To the Editor:? The article “Callers Raise Enough for Need Blind” that appeared in the Phillipian on January 9 did a nice job of describing the rewarding experience of those 15 students who participated in a four-day phonathon in December to help raise money for the Andover Fund. As the article reported, this is something student volunteers do three times a year, in March, June and December, and in 2008 their hard work helped raise just over $88,000 for the Andover Fund, which is used to support nearly every aspect of an Andover education. Unfortunately, the article and headline also contained inaccuracies and statements out of context. For one thing, the article states that the student-callers in December raised $800,000 during the phone-a-thon. The actual amount raised during the four days of calls was $30,000. To raise that money, the students made a total of 1,751 calls, which generated pledges from 194 alumni. The $800,000 figure cited in the article actually represents all alumni gifts made to the Andover Fund in amounts ranging from $25 to $250 during fiscal year 2008 (July 1, 2007 – June 30, 2008). During that time 65% of alumni donors made gifts in that range. This statistic helps demonstrate why every gift is important and why the work of the student volunteers is so critical. Many small gifts can add up to a significant amount of money. The article also stated that the $800,000 was “enough to fund the first year of need-blind admission.” While this money did help ensure that Andover could meet its commitment to need-blind admission, the article should have noted that the total financial aid budget for FY08 was $14.6 million. Ann Harris Director of Class, Reunion and Parent Giving
