Facilities
10/5/11
October Update
October 2011
Dear Families:
Thank you for helping make the start of the school year so successful. We are proud to be entering our sixth year with two thriving campuses. We wanted to take this opportunity to provide you with important background information to help you understand how EBI will continue to responsibly manage its growth and finances during this exciting period in our school's development.
The Board of Trustees' most important responsibility is to ensure a solid fiscal foundation to support the school's mission, both today and for the future. To this end, the Board takes a very conservative approach to the school's finances, and focuses on careful spending limited to expenditures that clearly result in increased student learning. As a result, EBI was able to retire its start-up deficit very quickly (in the third year of the school's operation), and has generated an operating reserve for the last three years. It is this reserve that allowed us to invest in our new Emeryville campus. It is a testament to EBI's mission, community and careful financial planning that we have accomplished this while attracting and retaining outstanding faculty, providing over $1.5 million in financial aid, and maintaining a tuition that is 20 percent lower than our peer schools in the East Bay.
Today, while we are contemplating significant investments in our new Emeryville campus, EBI's financial picture is strong. The school has over $1 million in cash in the bank and positive cash flow after servicing the loan on our Emeryville property. Additionally, our partner, Oliver & Company, guarantees the bank loan on our Emeryville property and has invested significant equity in our project.
Our plan for developing the Emeryville campus envisions a phased approach in which we will build out additional space incrementally as our student population grows. The modest Phase 1 development we completed over the summer upgraded the structural integrity of the building and provided classroom space in which our 3rd, 4th and 5th graders are currently thriving. Subsequent phases will create outstanding spaces for additional classes of students, and more information about planning for these phases is forthcoming. There will be opportunities for families to participate in this discussion. The phased approach to developing our facilities allows us to respond quickly to changes in enrollment and avoid investing significant money in advance of our need for additional space.
The current economic situation presents many challenges for independent schools, some of which are struggling to attract and retain students. EBI's unique and innovative approach to education, which combines the International Baccalaureate's internationally esteemed academic program with instruction in Spanish, English and Mandarin, positions us well to continue to attract highly qualified applicants and become the internationally-respected Pre-K through 8th grade school our founders envisioned. We had a waitlist for our kindergarten last year and our PreKinder is full. While these are good indicators that EBI's enrollment is strong and growing, it is important to note that we are not counting on increased enrollment to meet our financial obligations.
This is an exciting time in EBI's growth, as we contemplate building the spaces that will serve our students for the future. The Board of Trustees is carefully managing this process to ensure that our facilities can meet our needs while we continue to lay the foundation of financial integrity that will keep EBI viable for generations. If you have specific questions or would like additional information, please contact Jon Fulk.
Best regards,
Jill Malko Greg Schafer
Board Chair Board Treasurer
Written by: Jon Fulk Permalink