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Dear Fellow Board Members,
This evening, a Storm King chair,
with the SKS logo and an attached
appreciation plaque arrived at my
home. I don't find the right words to
express my thanks to
Mike Brower and the
Board for the honor you
all have given me by
sending me this chair. I
love our wonderful
School, and all that it has
done for so many of our
younger people. My 16
years on the SKS Board
have been immeasur-
ably rewarding, and I
shall never forget them.
The School certainly has
been through some
difficult times, and the
Board has responded with its time,
talent, and effort that has certainly
been the hallmark of the sort of
devotion to SKS that has made our
School so special.
I write this letter, not only as a
thank you for gifting me with a
memento I will always treasure, but
more to say, “thank you all for the
friendships and support that I have
come to treasure at my School.” It is
my deepest wish that the recent
trend of large enrollment, restrained
costs, and a healthy surplus (before
depreciation and capital improve-
ments) will continue.
I wish the Board continued
success, and a very successful Capital
Campaign. I am filled with anticipa-
tion for the ground breaking for our
new Academic Center. I expect to
remain involved.
My best regards to you all.
—
Jim Settel ‘50
SKS
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News
letter
Stepping Down / Moving On
After 16 years as a member of the SKS Board of Trustees, Jim Settel ’50 is
stepping down to start enjoying his retirement. Beloved by all and always the optimist
(“
Expect the Best!”), Jim gave his time, many talents and treasure to the School that he
credits with providing the foundation for his future success.
During Reunion weekend, Chair of the Board of Trustees Mike Brower ’63,
presented Jim with an engraved SKS chair which said, “Dear Jim, we thank you for
your dedicated support with time, talent, treasure, wisdom, and leadership given to our
School. Fondly, The Storm King School Community.”
At the recent Board of Trustees retreat, former Chair of the Board Peter Duggan
H’58 was also recognized for his years of service to the School. Peter and his wife, Mary
Vance, moved to Naples, Florida last December to begin enjoying their retirement.
We thank Peter and Jim for their unending dedication and hard work. Both Peter and
Jim will be involved with the upcoming Capital Campaign.
You might say that The Storm King School is running on all eight cylinders. Lots of good
things are happening at the School led by Paul Domingue, our energetic and talented new
head of school. In the upcoming academic year, we’ll integrate iPad technology into our
curriculum. We’re planning a transformation of our campus library into an academic center for
our students. And we’re planning a major capital campaign to fund some of our needs. With
these initiatives underway, our Board of Trustees recently participated in a weekend retreat, a
period of rigorous introspection to reaffirm our school’s mission and vision.
One of the major topics of discussion was the size and growth of the School. One of the
smallest college prep boarding schools in the country, Storm King would operate most
efficiently at a total enrollment of about 150 students. Yet our annual enrollment typically hovers
between 130 and 140. To that end, the Board has adopted the “150 in 150” initiative —we aim
to enroll 150 students by Storm King’s 150th anniversary in 2017. We are well on our way. The
class of 2012 was comprised of 40 students, one of our largest graduating classes ever.
The Board of Trustees and Paul will lead this
challenge, but we need the combined talent and
effort of our entire school community to reach this
goal. We know we can count on you, the students,
faculty, staff, parents, alumni, and friends of the
Storm King School, to help us realize this vision.
With the beginning of the school year, we
welcome back the returning and new students who
are among the luckiest in the world to have the
opportunity to attend The Storm King School.
—
Mike Brower ‘63
Chair of the Board of Trustees
The “150 in 150” initiative
Letter from the Chair of The Board of Trustees
