On May 13 in New York City, alumni, current and past parents, faculty and staff, and friends of the Academy gathered for the launch of Be Worthy: A Campaign for Deerfield—a true multi-generational celebration of the mission, values, and future of the school.
In remarks that connected the campaign directly to Deerfield’s oldest traditions and aspirations, Head of School Dr. John Austin reflected on the meaning behind the campaign’s name: “For more than two centuries, Deerfield has asked something of everyone who passes through it. That ask has been captured in five words: ‘Be worthy of your heritage.’ Those words can feel important but elusive—almost like a riddle. What heritage? Worthy of what, exactly?
Over time, the answer reveals itself. It means this: Honor the generations who came before and built Deerfield. Honor the teachers who have given life to its mission. Honor the students who came before you and left our school better than they found it. And then, do the same. Leave Deerfield stronger, more deeply itself, more worthy than you found it. That is the standard, and it is the oldest one this school knows.
We have named this campaign Be Worthy because that is precisely what it asks of us. The responsibility to steward, to sustain, and to build for the future—renewed, as it must be, by every generation. This campaign is our generation’s answer to that call.”
Be Worthy rests on four pillars—opportunity, place, faculty, and community—and campaign priorities include fully endowing Deerfield’s financial aid initiative, launched in 2025; strengthening the Academy’s historic campus and distinctive residential experience; supporting faculty and their families; and investing in future generations of Deerfield students through the Deerfield Fund, planned gifts, and unrestricted endowment.
During the evening, Dr. Austin announced an anonymous and transformative $30 million gift—the largest gift ever to the Academy from a living alumnus—in support of the complete renovation of the Main School Building in time for its centennial, returning the “MSB” to its original purpose as a center for academic life.
President of the Board of Trustees Leila Govi ’93 P’26, ’28 announced a major new challenge gift in support of faculty: “In honor of our faculty,” she said, “I am thrilled to announce that a donor has committed $10 million as a matching gift. They will match any gift—dollar for dollar—to support our faculty, up to $10 million. That means this community has the opportunity, right now, to put $20 million behind the faculty who make Deerfield what it is.”
“Everything we hope for our students rests on the strength and renewal of our faculty,” Dr. Austin said. “It is a proven and time-tested way to foster in young people those qualities of character, curiosity, and independent thought that prepare them to lead with resiliency and judgment.”
Throughout the evening, additional speakers, including Honorary Chair E. John Rosenwald ’48 P’76, emphasized that Be Worthy is both a call to stewardship and an investment in the enduring values that have defined Deerfield for generations. Thus far, $340 million has been raised in support of the campaign’s priorities, which strengthen every aspect of the Deerfield Experience.
Ms. Govi highlighted that the launch of Be Worthy marks not a conclusion, but the beginning of the campaign’s next phase: “This community has already shown that it believes deeply in what this school is building. But our work here is not finished. We still have $160 million left to raise. And we need your help. Your support will determine whether we merely preserve what is special about this place or strengthen it for generations to come.”
Building on legendary Headmaster Frank L. Boyden’s historic ask to families to “pay what you can,” Be Worthy seeks to fully endow Deerfield’s modern-day financial aid initiative, in which families who make up to $150,000 per year pay no tuition, and for those above that threshold, only ten percent of their annual income. Be Worthy also seeks to fully endow the supplemental aid program, ensuring that every student can fully participate in the Deerfield experience regardless of financial means.
In his remarks, Dr. Austin described that commitment as central to Deerfield’s identity and moral purpose: “Mr. Boyden’s invitation to families to ‘pay what you can’ was one of the most radical —and inspiring—acts in the history of American independent school education. It said to all families simply and clearly: A Deerfield education should belong to every young person of potential and promise, regardless of means.”
In addition, the campaign includes the construction of a new West Campus Dormitory, designed to deepen Deerfield’s residential model by providing the necessary space for the Academy to embrace a full-boarding model. Together, these projects seek to “fortify the architecture of belonging,” reinforcing the relationships, traditions, and shared experiences that distinguish Deerfield’s culture.
“We want the absolute best faculty in the country, and we want them fully engaged in our students’ lives,” Dr. Austin said. “We want Deerfield to continue leading nationally in intellectual freedom and dialogue. We want a Deerfield education to remain affordable and accessible to every family of promise. And when we do, this community will have achieved something extraordinary: the most successful campaign in Deerfield’s history, exactly one hundred years after Frank Boyden launched the school’s first great campaign in 1929.”
The evening also highlighted Deerfield’s investment in preparing students for thoughtful citizenship and leadership in a complex world. Support for the Center for Global and Civic Engagement advances opportunities for students to engage across differences through dialogue, inquiry, and public engagement, building on the ideas described in Dr. Austin’s nationally recognized Framework for Schools.
Dr. Austin concluded by emphasizing that the campaign’s success will ultimately be measured not only in dollars raised, but in the breadth of participation and shared commitment across the Deerfield community: “Deerfield is a great, multi-generational accomplishment, and we are poised to build upon its historic strengths by broadening its commitment to excellence and student flourishing,” he said. “Earlier, I discussed three ways of being worthy. There is a fourth: Being worthy together. What has always sustained Team Deerfield is the collective power of a community that believes in the school and supports it broadly and proudly. Whether through the Deerfield Fund, a bequest, or the Parents Fund, our greatest strength is when we work together.
“Our hope is that every member of our community feels inspired by the campaign and its vision for Deerfield. And for that reason, we want this campaign to set a standard—not simply by achieving its stated goals, but for how many people choose to be a part of it. If we do that—and I know we will—we will take the great school that you know and love to a new level of excellence.”