Community Spirit: More Than 1,255 Donors Rally for Kent Place on Founders Day

On Wednesday, March 4, Kent Place celebrated its seventh Founders Day, the school’s annual day of giving. Banners, balloons, and exuberant greetings from students, teachers, and administrators brightened the overcast winter day. Chumley the Dragon — Quinn Kubeck ’29 volunteered to be Chumley for the morning — doled out generous high fives, while the mascot’s smaller counterpart — Madison Hsueh ’36, dressed as “mini Chumley” — posed with Primary students.

To encourage community participation, this year’s Founders Day video featured Kent Place students working through math strategies and applications of the number 1,000, to highlight the donor goal, across divisions. Students even made guesses of how far 1,000 steps would take Chumley. Watch the video to find out!

Following tradition, each Upper School Advisory created a unique Founders Day poster. Paraded about during the morning carline, the posters were then brought to the Primary School, where Kindergartners voted on their favorite. The winning poster — from the Woodring Advisory — earned a Dunkin’ Donuts breakfast.

All Founders Day gifts are deposited into the Kent Place Fund, which supports immediate student and faculty needs as well as our signature programs, such as the Ethics Institute and the Girls’ Leadership Institute. The generosity of our community ensures that Kent Place is as vibrant and vital today as it was at its founding — thank you!

The event was an incredible success. In just 24 hours . . . 

• More than $694,000 raised
• $125,000 unlocked through challenges
• More than 1,255 donors 
• 100 percent Board of Trustees participation
• 100 percent Alumnae Board participation

Other fun facts from Founders Day 2026 . . .

• Encouraging participation among young alumnae, donors in Classes 2010–2025 were automatically entered into a special raffle. Neeley Lawrence ’11 nabbed the prize: a KPS gift basket with a cozy flannel sherpa blanket, T-shirt, hat, and other goodies.
• A special Reunion Giving Challenge was issued to alumnae in classes ending in 1 and 6. The Class of 1991 was victorious, earning extra-special acknowledgments and surprises during April’s Alumnae Weekend. Honorable mention goes to the second-place Class of 2006, celebrating its 20th reunion.