Announcing the Lyceum Institute‘s plan for building its future and the future model of education.
Dear friends, supporters of the Lyceum, and believers in the importance of genuine human education:
I am thrilled, though not without a little trepidation, to announce the next major step in the development of the Lyceum Institute: the establishment of an Endowment Fund. We do so today, on August 11, the dies natalis of a great proponent of education, St. John Henry Newman, whose perennially-relevant work, The Idea of a University, guides the intent of the Lyceum Institute.
Building True Education: Our Purpose
An Endowment Fund is a dedicated financial reserve, prudently invested to generate returns that in turn will support the Institute’s mission by providing long-term stability. Donations to this fund will not go to servicing immediate needs, but instead, to digging deep and stable foundations upon which we can build for the future.
This Fund will transform our organization from a startup to an established institution that is leading in efforts to build the future of education. By establishing an Endowment, the Lyceum Institute will be able to provide salaries and benefits for a full-time Faculty, including all Administrative Personnel, as well as to provide support for our other operating costs such as research, technology, and publication.
There are many reasons why the university is not the future of education: though it will retain an importance for the immediate future, as technology changes the environments of human living, the university—simply speaking—already finds itself insufficient to provide the kind of education needed today. We need education that is on-going, that is integral to how we live, and that is not ordered merely towards preparation for a career, but for continued growth of the human intellect and understanding. It is for this reason that the Lyceum, and similar forward-looking institutions, need financial stability: to provide the education through which human beings can flourish. We can build this future.
Fundraising for the future
Such an ambitious goal requires a substantial amount of funding. We have a slow and steady plan, as with all developments that we intend, and thus do not aim to raise all that we need all at once. Rather, we have divided the growth of our Endowment into two phases: Establishment (2024–2027) and Development (2027–2031). Through the first phase, we aim to raise $5,000,000 USD. Expecting an average annual return of roughly 4.5%, we plan to sustain 3 full-time personnel from the returns, while directing the rest to further growth and expenses. The second phase will aim to raise an additional $10,000,000 (for a total of $15,000,000), which will allow us six fulltime Faculty, to give decent stipends to annual Faculty Fellows, and maintain the ability to grow, build reserve funds, and to increase our public-facing ventures.
Every donation matters. Small, large, or anywhere in between: we need your help to realize this vision. Whatever you give is greatly appreciated. We accept donations by credit card (see form below) or check (use our contact page to make arrangements).
You can find the permanent page for the Endowment here: https://lyceum.institute/support/endowment-fund/
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