On January 22, 2026, St. Margaret’s Episcopal School leadership—Board of Trustees President Dana Sullivan, Head of School Dr. Jeneen Graham, PTF President Kari De Vries, Chief Financial & Operating Officer Alanna Cajthaml, Assistant Head of School for Health and Wellness Patrick Bendzick, Director of Institutional Research Dr. Stephanie Capen, Executive Director of Advancement Jonathan Tufo and Director of Educational Technology Angela Mackenzie—presented the 2026 State of the School in Hurlbut Theater. This executive summary report highlights school operational and financial metrics demonstrating the health and strength of St. Margaret’s Episcopal School.
Thank you for your partnership and commitment to St. Margaret’s. Together, we will continue to see through our mission of educating the hearts and minds of young people for lives of learning, leadership and service.
Feature Film
St. Margaret’s Report Card
Dr. Capen describes St. Margaret’s accreditation self-study as an opportunity to hold up a mirror to the school.
The 2026 State of the School featured an annual report card presented by Director of Institutional Research Dr. Stephanie Capen, who dived into detail on the data and measurements in place to illuminate St. Margaret’s fulfillment of its mission and core values.
Dr. Capen presented an all-encompassing look at how St. Margaret’s measures its mission, done through the lens of the accreditation self-study process that St. Margaret’s recently completed. The accreditation self-study asks St. Margaret’s to respond to more than 150 reflection questions connected to standards and indicators of successful independent schools, and Dr. Capen presented data and findings for St. Margaret’s around academics, athletics, arts, student life, equity and inclusion, and much more.
“Accreditation is a self-study process that engages the entire school community in reflection,” Dr. Capen told the audience. “The self-study process helps us better understand and improve the student experience, it helps us capture our timeline of growth as a school; what we are learning and how we are evolving together. We hold up that mirror; we bring all the voices together in this process because every member of our school community is deeply worth noticing.”
Tartans Thrive: Campaign for a Common Purpose
St. Margaret’s launched Tartans Thrive in September 2023, which energized the school community to engage with elements of human thriving: healthy bodies, minds and spirits, and meaningful connection.
The centerpiece of the Tartans Thrive campaign is the St. Margaret’s Commons, a transformational community space. This 30,000-square-foot, two-story building will be the heart of the campus and serve all Tartans in their nutrition, fitness and well-being. The Commons will be a gathering space for students of all ages and provide myriad benefits for the entire school community.
Since the launch of Tartans Thrive, the St. Margaret’s community has shown its support to the campaign in many ways, and as of January 22 the generous Tartan community has pledged $27,252,000 to the campaign. Here is a breakdown::
Number of Gifts: 583
Types of Gifts:
Cash Gifts: 570
Stock Gifts: 22
Foundation Gifts: 45
Corporate Matching Programs: 9
Wire Transfer Gifts: 17
Donor Advised Fund Gifts: 27
Number of Donors: 352
Gifts by Constituency:
Parents: 344
Alumni Parents and Legacy Grandparents: 106
Board of Trustees (current and former): 52
Alumni: 32
Professional Community (current and former): 57
Foundations: 29
Friends: 28
Project Timeline
JULY 2024
Demolition
JANUARY 2025
Groundbreaking
FALL 2026
Ribbon Cutting
For more information, including how you can support Tartans Thrive, visit TartansThrive.org or contact Jonathan Tufo, Executive Director of Advancement, at jtufo@smes.org.
-Some data are not exclusive and may reflect multiple categories.
-Gifts reflect Fund A Need gifts to the St. Margaret’s Commons in 2019, 2022 and 2023, along with other direct gifts to the project.
Admission
St. Margaret’s Admission Office continues to have another terrific season. In October and November, we offered lively division-specific Open Houses which hit record attendance! Throughout the fall we also provided motivated Middle School and Upper School applicants the chance to opt-in to an Early Review Application Process with a December 1 deadline. And finally, Early School & Lower School Discovery Days filled our calendar with “Sneaker Tours” being available in the afternoon. Most importantly, the St. Margaret’s Admission team has appreciated working closely with families form 28 local communities, 7 states and 5 countries!
*Reflects 2025-2026 Admission data compiled January 22, 2026
- Fully enrolled at 1,234 Students
- 840+ Inquiries
- 568 Applications
- Applicants represent 28 local communities, 7 states and 5 countries.
Finance
St. Margaret’s remains financially solid. The school remains committed to financial stability, an exceptional student experience and ensuring the recruitment and retainment of talent within its professional community.
FY26 Budget
Expenses
60.2%
Salaries & Benefits
13.7%
Department Expenses &
Professional Development
8.9%
Financial Support
6.3%
Debt & Business Operations
2.0%
Facilities
4.2%
Auxiliary Services
4.7%
Food Services
Revenue
90.6%
Tuition & Fees
4.4%
Auxiliary Services
2.6%
Endowment & Annual Fund
2.4%
Other Revenue
Advancement
$1,000,000+ to date in the 2025-2026 Annual Fund
$27,200,000+ to date committed to the Tartans Thrive campaign to construct the St. Margaret’s Commons
$31,000,000+ in Endowment Fund
Endowment Fund (in $M)
*Reflects 2025-2026 Advancement data compiled to January 21, 2026
Parent Teacher Fellowship
The mission of the PTF is to offer cultural, physical, spiritual and educational enrichment to the students, teachers and families of St. Margaret’s Episcopal School through community building and fundraising. All PTF activities are conducted in accordance with policies and protocols adopted by St. Margaret’s Episcopal School.
Fundraising
$1,000,000+ Raised at the 2025 Forever Plaid all-school fundraiser
Community Building
2,400+ participants at in-person community events:
Welcome Back Coffee
Fall Grade Level Coffees (K-12)
Tartan Family BBQ & Tartans Thrive Expo
Tree Lighting Ceremony
Parent Community Workshops
Parent Up Speaker Series
Booster Merchandise & Snack Bar
225+ Hot Lunch Program Volunteers
PTF Grants
SPRING GRANTS
$125,000+ Donated to support instructional program as part of the PTF Grant program.
$1,400,000+ Donated to support capital gifts.
The 2026 State of the School report was issued to the St. Margaret’s community on January 23, 2026 and all data and information contained herein is a snapshot at publication date.