Fall 2006 Update

On to the Arts Complex: The second phase of the capital campaign building program continues to progress well and the layout of the new arts complex is approaching completion. The location at the top of the meadow, west of the main path, provides one of the best views on campus.

A new arts building will include a larger painting and drawing studio well lit by northern exposure light, a photo studio that can accomodate the increasing number of students studying both traditional and digital photography, and a computer graphics area for the new art of video production. The extensive library of arts books will accompany the move up the hill for continued inspiration and technical research.

Close by, a separate building will house the ceramics studio, bringing that program out of the basement into daylight and fresh air, and providing space for several outside kilns for gas, wood and raku firings. A small patio will link the buildings, allowing students to work outside on sunny days, and providing space for sculpture projects to become a more significant part of the arts program.

The "Tool Shed" music building will be relocated on the foot path that curves up along the treeline from the Main House, opening up the views and also providing much-needed renovations of the music classroom and practice rooms.

All three buildings will be tied together with a new wood-fired boiler, continuing Buxton's practice of self-sustainable heating. We also hope that a new element will be added to the arts buildings by incorporating solar panels to provide much of the electrical needs of the complex. "Green" building design is a significant factor in the plans for both the new studios as well as the renovations of the music rooms, continuing the steps taken during the re-design of the classroom building last year. The appearance of the arts buildings will echo the new wood and glass exterior of the classroom building so that the two buildings will complement each other across the central part of campus.

A Message from our Campaign Co-Chairs and Director

Buxton School has embarked upon a fundraising campaign unprecedented in its 77 year history. As the School's largest fundraising initiative ever, the Campaign, Preserving the Past - Ensuring the Future, seeks to raise $4.6 million for new building projects, critical capital improvements and to build our endowment.

This is a meaningful moment in the history of Buxton School. Over the course of the next year, when you visit the Buxton campus, you should expect to see considerable activity underway. Already, we have nearly completed major renovations of the Classroom Building, and significant progress has been made on the addition of the new biology laboratory. If all goes according to schedule, we will begin plans for a new Fine Arts Building before the end of the year. These projects will support the important and exciting work of Buxton students and faculty and preserve our existing campus and buildings.

We have had, for all intents and purposes, no endowment upon which to draw in good times and bad. Throughout the campaign, we will continue to build our endowment to strengthen support for financial aid and for the faculty to insure the life and vitality of the School for generations to come.

The Board of Trustees is committed to completing these capital improvements without incurring any debt. We have been able to get these projects underway through the financial contribution and commitments of a limited segment of our community thus far, but now we are asking the entire community to join us to make all of these projects a reality.