Finance:
Ensuring Financial Stability & Sustainability
2025-2030: Finance
St. Luke's School began in 1945 to serve young families who were moving to the West Village as World War II ended. We opened our doors on September 24, 1945, with 19 children and 2 teachers in the Parish House of the Church of St. Luke in the Fields. For 67 years, we grew and operated as a division of the church until becoming independent in 2012. At that time, we began a physical expansion of our facilities as well as our student body, and faced the need to become a financially viable, fully independent school. Now, in 2025, we are celebrating our 80th Anniversary with a robust enrollment of nearly 360 students, a dedicated professional staff, and a strong community ready to lean into our future while also honoring our past!
Over the next five years, we will invest in our future, ensuring that St. Luke’s School will continue to be a distinguished leader in New York City's independent school community, as a haven for students where they engage in joyful learning, rigorous academics, character development, and a commitment to serving something greater than themselves. With a history of educating young people to be thoughtful leaders and engaged citizens, St. Luke's balances a deep respect for tradition with a forward-looking approach to educating the whole child. With the right financial foundation in place, our school will be well-positioned to champion our mission and bravely go forth into our future, where we continue to foster a nurturing and challenging environment where students learn with joy and lead with heart.
Strategic Priority 1
Refine a rolling 5-year strategic financial plan built around the major levers of an independent school business model, namely enrollment, tuition, alternative sources of revenue, and financial assistance.
Strategic Priority 2
Optimize operational spending, realize opportunities for savings, and reallocate resources to support our strategic priorities.
Strategic Priority 3
Strengthen our strategic approach to fundraising to emphasize community, foster a culture of philanthropy, and realize opportunities to increase the annual fund, optimize capital campaigning, and grow our endowment.
Finance and Belonging
At St. Luke’s, we view our budget as a moral document, with our unwavering commitment to the dignity of all human beings at the core of our value proposition. St. Luke’s School is unique, not just because of its oasis-like campus in the middle of a bustling city, but because of its deep dedication to celebrating the joys of learning, holding high expectations for academic performance, and believing in leadership as service. As we look to the future, we will ensure that St. Luke’s School continues to thrive financially so it can remain a leader in the NYC Independent School market.
Our Goals:
Finance 2025 - 2026
In our first year, we will focus on the 5-year strategic financial plan, operational spending, and a culture of philanthropy. As part of the 5-year strategic financial plan, we will continue our work to determine the optimal enrollment and student body composition of St. Luke’s School, one of the most important levers of our financial model, which we will routinely assess. We will focus our resources on retention by assessing our strategies and refining our financial assistance process and program. Believing that our budget is a moral document, we will continue the work of aligning expenses with mission.
As we transition from a culture of fundraising to a culture of philanthropy, we will continue to grow our Annual Fund and create opportunities for expanded community engagement, with a focus on alumni. To accomplish this, we will need to optimize systems and structures in support of the success of advancement initiatives and understand our community’s capacity to secure a financial foundation for the future, which will include plans for fundraising beyond operations and intentional plans to grow our endowment.
Our Strategic Plan in Action: 2025-2026
The School has invested in improved data tracking to strengthen enrollment management. (Optimized enrollment and student body composition)
The School has invested in improved data tracking to strengthen enrollment management. (Optimized enrollment and student body composition)
In collaboration with the Communications Department, the Admissions & Enrollment Office improved the Viewbook as an intermediary step toward a future relaunched viewbook. (Optimized enrollment and student body composition)
In collaboration with the Communications Department, the Admissions & Enrollment Office improved the Viewbook as an intermediary step toward a future relaunched viewbook. (Optimized enrollment and student body composition)
The CFOO instituted regular assessments of the key financial levers with the Finance Committee during the budgeting cycle. (Routine assessment of key financial model levers)
The CFOO instituted regular assessments of the key financial levers with the Finance Committee during the budgeting cycle. (Routine assessment of key financial model levers)
The Advancement Office in collaboration with the Head of School, Senior Leadership, the Board, and the Parents’ Association created a coordinated approach to onboarding new families with 100 Day Check-Ins. (Robust retention strategies)
The Advancement Office in collaboration with the Head of School, Senior Leadership, the Board, and the Parents’ Association created a coordinated approach to onboarding new families with 100 Day Check-Ins. (Robust retention strategies)
The School is working to strengthen family connections among themselves and with the greater school community through new cultural celebrations that reflect the diversity of St. Luke’s School. (Robust retention strategies)
The School is working to strengthen family connections among themselves and with the greater school community through new cultural celebrations that reflect the diversity of St. Luke’s School. (Robust retention strategies)
Through the use of Clarity to support financial assistance packages, the Financial Assistance Committee has strengthened the consistency and structure of our review practices to better meet the needs of our families. (Refined financial assistance program and processes)
Through the use of Clarity to support financial assistance packages, the Financial Assistance Committee has strengthened the consistency and structure of our review practices to better meet the needs of our families. (Refined financial assistance program and processes)
Each year we assess our expenses to ensure that they support the mission of our school. For example, our overnight trip program is included in family tuition, given its role in a St. Luke’s student's journey. (Expenses aligned with mission)
Each year we assess our expenses to ensure that they support the mission of our school. For example, our overnight trip program is included in family tuition, given its role in a St. Luke’s student's journey. (Expenses aligned with mission)
The Advancement Office enriches community education on the importance of the Annual Fund. (Annual Fund growth)
The Advancement Office enriches community education on the importance of the Annual Fund. (Annual Fund growth)
St. Luke’s celebrated the 80th Anniversary with a record-breaking Spring Benefit! (Expanded community and alumni engagement)
St. Luke’s celebrated the 80th Anniversary with a record-breaking Spring Benefit! (Expanded community and alumni engagement)
The Advancement Office is now using one database – Veracross – to manage all development operations. (Optimized advancement systems and structures)
The Advancement Office is now using one database – Veracross – to manage all development operations. (Optimized advancement systems and structures)
A Look Ahead:
Finance 2026 - 2030
2026 - 2027
In our second year of the plan, we will continue to analyze for optimal enrollment and student body composition, as well as identify other levers of our business model that need resources and attention, especially alternative revenue sources. We will continue to invest resources in retention by assessing our strategies and refining our financial assistance process and program. Believing that our budget is a moral document, we will continue the work of aligning expenses with mission, specifically by auditing service providers and vendors.
We will continue to transition from a culture of fundraising to a culture of philanthropy. Our Annual Fund will become sustainable and a predictable baseline for St. Luke’s operations. We will expand community engagement with a focus on alumni. To accomplish this, we will continue to optimize systems and structures in support of the success of advancement initiatives and understand our community’s capacity to secure a financial foundation for the future, including fundraising beyond operations and intentional plans to grow our endowment. All of this will be in service to a shared understanding and clear distillation of our mission, unique value proposition, and why our special school must thrive for generations to come.
2027 - 2028
In our third year of the plan, we will determine our optimal enrollment and student body composition, as well as identify other levers of our business model that need resources and attention, especially alternative revenue sources. We will continue to invest in clarifying and expanding our financial assistance process and program. Believing that our budget is a moral document, we will continue to audit service providers and vendors.
We will continue to transition from a culture of fundraising to a culture of philanthropy. Our Annual Fund will serve as a predictable baseline for St. Luke’s operations, enabling us to continue expanding community engagement with a focus on alumni. In service to building the foundation for our future, we will continue to communicate within and outside of our community what makes St. Luke’s so special and why it needs to exist for students for generations to come.
2028 - 2029
In our fourth year of the plan, we will establish routines for assessing, identifying, and addressing impacts on the key levers of our financial model. We will expand our financial assistance process and program, as well as alternative revenue streams and grants.
We will continue to transition from a culture of fundraising to a culture of philanthropy. Our Annual Fund will serve as a foundational baseline for St. Luke’s operations, and we will enhance community engagement with a focus on alumni. In service to building the foundation for our future, we will continue to communicate within and outside of our community what makes St. Luke’s so special and why it needs to exist for students for generations to come.
2029 - 2030
In our final year of the plan, we will have a reliable 5-year financial plan that will serve to inform strategic decisions. We will revisit optimal enrollment with an eye to a sustainable future for St. Luke’s School and a foundation for the next strategic planning cycle. We will routinely refine the process for assessing, identifying, and addressing impacts on the key levers of our financial model. We will refine our financial assistance process and program.
We will transition from a culture of fundraising to a culture of philanthropy, supported by a robust Annual Fund, alumni engagement, and a clear foundation that will sustain St. Luke’s School as a unique academic institution and haven in a bustling city for generations to come.
Our Tactical Initiatives:
Students 2025 - 2030
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