ODA Annual Fund

No, tuition doesn’t cover everything. While tuition pays for the basics, it doesn’t fully fund the complete ODA experience our students enjoy every day.

The Annual Fund fills the gap between what tuition covers and what it actually costs to run our school each year. It’s essential to maintaining the quality education and enriching experiences that define ODA.

Not at all. Independent schools have relied on Annual Fund support for over 100 years. It’s a longstanding tradition in independent education and a key part of how these schools maintain excellence while keeping tuition manageable. Nearly every independent school in the country operates this way, it’s simply part of the independent school model.

Your gift supports what makes ODA exceptional! Great educators, small classes, advanced technology, arts programs, athletics, and the wide range of student programs are all things that make our school so special.

No, Annual Fund gifts are unrestricted support. They offset the operating budget and provide flexibility to address the school’s most pressing needs. Annual Fund gifts do not support capital projects like building construction or major renovations.

No. The Annual Fund is not used for major construction or capital projects. Those large-scale facilities like new buildings, athletic complexes, renovations, and campus expansions are funded separately through capital campaigns and designated gifts.

Your gift impacts students right now. Annual Fund contributions are used in the same year they’re given, so your support directly benefits your child and their classmates today.

Participation matters more than the amount. Every family’s gift, no matter the size, shows support for ODA and strengthens our community. When parents, alumni, and friends all contribute, it adds up to amazing opportunities for our students.

The Annual Fund helps keep tuition increases manageable. The more we raise through philanthropy, the less pressure there is to raise tuition for families.

Absolutely. Every dollar counts. When our entire community participates, those individual gifts collectively create extraordinary opportunities for our students.

That’s wonderful news for our students! Any funds raised beyond our goal go directly into the operating budget, allowing us to enhance programs, invest in additional resources, or reduce the pressure for tuition increases in future years. There’s no such thing as raising “too much” for the Annual Fund because every dollar benefits our students.

The 1924 Leadership Society is our leadership annual giving society, recognizing donors who make gifts of $1,924 or more to the Annual Fund. Members of the 1924 Leadership Society demonstrate exceptional commitment to ODA’s mission and help ensure the school’s continued excellence.

We also recognize loyal donors through our consecutive giving society called the Riser Society, which honors those who have made Annual Fund gifts for three or more consecutive years.

Revenue from tickets, sponsorships, paddles-raises, and auction items all contribute to the Annual Fund, which strengthens the school’s operating budget for the current year.