On Monday, August 21, NDB began advertising its six-week Annual Fund event. Between the rigorous academics, intense sports, clubs and multiple electives offered, the tuition our families pay does not cover it all. That is where the Annual Fund comes in. All donated funds go straight to benefitting the student body and maintaining the multitude of opportunities that NDB has to offer. This year, in celebration of the school’s centennial, a special emphasis has been placed on the event. The community, including all parents, students and staffulty were encouraged to contribute to this year’s fund.

The Annual Fund Committee, a group of parents working alongside Head of School Meredith Essalat, have been responsible for organizing and managing the event. This year, NDB’s Associated Student Body (ASB), Link Crew Board and members of student council reached out to the committee to provide assistance in planning what was called “Student Giving Week.”

Student Giving Week, which began on September 18 and ran until September 22, was an opportunity for students to donate to the fund. For the entirety of the week, parent volunteers spent their lunch in the campus dining room collecting donations via cash and Apple Pay.

Two class competitions were organized to incentivize students to donate. The first category was for the highest dollar amount donated by a class and the second was for the highest percentage of participation for the class.

“Notre Dame really is about community and giving back to each other. Philanthropy needs to start now and it was so great to engage students in the Annual Fund,” said Annual Fund Committee Chair Cheryl Muzzi. “Working with the students was such a pleasure. I was impressed with their energy, commitment and their willingness to help organize the Student Giving Week.”

Along with the competitions came prizes to the winning classes.100 spirit points, a sweet treat from Epicurean, a full week of early dismissal to lunch and a pajama day was awarded to the winning classes. NDB has not had a pajama day since 2018, so the chance of having one brought a lot of competitiveness out of the students.

At the end of Student Giving Week, students attended a game of knockout, a game similar to basketball, where players form a line and then try to make a basket before the person behind them can.

During the days approaching the game, students had an additional opportunity to contribute to the fund by making a pledge supporting the team of their choice. The Blue and Gold Team battled it out until seniors Caitlin Degnan and Katie Johnson were the last ones standing, giving the Blue Team and their supporters a victory and a free treat from Epicurean at the end of lunch.

The winners of all competitions were announced on the following Monday, September 25 by ASB. The juniors donated the most money with $2,860.50 as their total and the seniors had the most participation with 64% of students adding to the fund. In total, the student body donated $7,061.50 to the Annual Fund.

On Monday, August 21, NDB began advertising for its six-week Annual Fund. Between the rigorous academics, intense sports, clubs and multiple electives offered, the tuition our families pay doesn’t cover it all. That’s where the annual fund comes in. All funds donated go straight to benefitting the student body and maintaining the multitude of opportunities that NDB has to offer. This year, in celebration of NDB’s Centennial, a special emphasis has been placed on the Annual Fund. The community, including all parents, students and teachers were encouraged to contribute to this year’s fund.

The Annual Fund Committee, a board of parents working alongside Head of School Meredith Essalat have been responsible for organizing and managing the Annual Fund. The Annual Fund happens every year, but this year NDB’s Associated Student Body (ASB), Link Crew Board and members of the student council reached out to the committee to provide assistance in planning what was called “Student Giving Week.”

Student Giving Week, which began on September 18 and ran until September 22, was an opportunity for students to donate to the fund. For the entirety of the week, parent volunteers spent their lunch in the dining room collecting donations via cash and Apple Pay. Two class competitions were organized to incentivize students to donate. The first category was for the highest dollar amount donated by a class and the second was for the highest percentage of participation for the class.

“Notre Dame really is about community and giving back to each other. Philanthropy needs to start now and it was so great to engage students in the Annual Fund,” said Annual Fund Committee Chair Cheryl Muzzi. “Working with the students was such a pleasure. I was impressed with their energy, commitment and their willingness to help organize the Student Giving Week.”

Along with the competitions came prizes to the winning classes. 100 spirit points, a sweet treat from Epicurean, a full week of early dismissal to lunch and a pajama day was awarded to the Dragons and the Monarchs. NDB hasn’t had a pajama day since 2018, so it brought a lot of competitiveness out from the students.

At the end of Student Giving Week, students attended a round of knockout, a game similar to basketball, where players form a line and then try to make a basket before the person behind them can. During the days approaching the game, students had an additional opportunity to contribute to the Annual Fund by making a pledge supporting the team of their choice. The Blue and Gold Team battled it out until seniors Caitlin Degnan and Katie Johnson were the last ones standing, giving the Blue Team and their supporters a free treat from Epicurean at the end of lunch.

The winners of all competitions were announced on the following Monday, September 25 by ASB. The juniors donated the most money with $2,860.50 as their total and the seniors had the most participation with 64% of students adding to the fund. In total, the student body donated $7,061.5 to the Annual Fund.