Report of the President: 2012 - UWC-USA

ONWARD
Nine longtime faculty and staff head off for new adventures
The conclusion of the 2012 school year saw the bit‑
tersweet departure of some of UWC‑USA’s most se‑
nior community members as they retired to follow
new paths. Many had been on campus almost since
the day the doors opened and had shared fond—and
often funny—memories of those early days when
the school had its own small stable of horses and the
Internet was just a gleam in an inventor’s eye.
Linda and Tom Curtis, dean of students and Span‑
ish teacher, respectively, raised their family at
UWC‑USA. They also brought up several genera‑
tions of extended family through their warm rela‑
tionships with students. In addition to teaching,
Tom touched the lives of hundreds of Las Vegas kids
through his leadership of the Children’s Chorus.
Tom and Linda spent 25 years at UWC‑USA.
Social and cultural anthropologist John Geffroy prid‑
ed himself on being a teacher and a learner. “My stu‑
dents, as much as any theory book, have given me
the understanding that cultures change,” he once
said. “I have learned the importance of understand‑
ing various cultural perspectives and how to listen
well.” John’s UWC‑USA career covered 24 years.
Tom Lamberth first taught basic first aid for the
UWC‑USA Wilderness Program; he retired serv‑
ing as the program director. During his 21 years on
campus, Tom changed his perspective from seeing
nature as a place of recreation and escape to being
a place of profound growth. He took special pride in
“seeing students wake up to the wilderness, by hav‑
ing students discover their homes.”
Aleyda McKiernan served as a Spanish teacher for
24 years. An avid reader, Aleyda found joy in guid‑
ing students toward a passion for language, reading,
and communication. She loved her students and the
school: “This is a paradise for teachers,” she once said.
Like all UWC‑USA faculty members, French teacher
Robin Norris wore many hats during his 24‑year
tenure. Being involved in so many activities allowed
him to “interact with students in a different set‑
ting”—something he truly relished. Originally from
Barbados, Robin provided a second home for Carib‑
bean students and French speakers.
Ted Reineke’s UWC‑USA career lasted nearly three
decades and included everything from lab technician
to audio‑visual go‑to guy. He booked flights, drove
buses, and taught a stagecraft class. It wasn’t exactly
what he expected when he first arrived on campus
with a science degree, but he quickly adapted and
took on whatever needed to be done.
Compared to their retiring colleagues, Nina Mar‑
quez‑Johns and Carl Sanchez were relative newcom‑
ers. Each had been at UWC‑USA for a little more
than a decade, but in those 10 years, they still made
a significant mark. Nina’s last role was as registrar,
and she became an expert at juggling demands of
200 students every year. Carl worked for the security
department, and his friendly greetings were always
welcomed and appreciated.
We wish our retirees much joy as they discover new
paths and tackle new projects!
pLANNED giFTS
Planned gifts create opportunities for our support‑
ers and UWC‑USA. There are many ways to make
a planned gift. The best one will balance what you
wish to accomplish for yourself, your family, and
your charitable interests in your overall estate and
financial plans.
BEQUESTS. The simplest way to make a planned
gift is to name UWC‑USA in your will. You can
make a bequest of a certain dollar amount, a par‑
ticular piece of property, a percentage of your estate,
or a “residual” (what is left after making specific
provisions for loved ones).
GIFTS FROM RETIREMENT PLANS. Retirement
funds are often taxable—whether to you or your
heirs—when withdrawn. If you make a gift directly
from your retirement fund to UWC‑USA, you can
WAyS TO giVE
Your gifts to UWC‑USA help students from around
the world obtain a unique education that prepares
them to become leaders for positive change—in the
world and in their own communities. UWC‑USA
offers many opportunities to support the school:
CREDIT CARD: (including automatically recur‑
ring monthly gifts): Use your American Express,
Discover, MasterCard, or Visa to make an online gift
at www.uwc‑usa.org/give or phone in your gift by
calling (505) 454‑4265.
CHECK: Make your check payable to the United World
College‑USA and mail it to the following address:
UWC‑USA Advancement Office
Post Office Box 248
Montezuma, NM 87731‑0248
USA
GIFT OF STOCK: You can contribute the fair
market value of appreciated securities and avoid cap‑
ital gains tax on the appreciated value of the stock.
Planned Gifts and Ways to
Give
often avoid these taxes by taking an offsetting
deduction for your charitable gift.
GIFTS THAT RETURN FINANCIAL BENEFITS.
Gifts that pay income are often favored by donors
with appreciated assets such as a business, stocks,
or real estate. These gifts can be structured to
provide you and/or others with income, tax savings,
and other benefits while leaving a lasting legacy
for UWC‑USA.
To learn more about tax benefits related to planned
giving, please speak to your financial advisor. If
you would like to have a confidential dialogue
about supporting UWC‑USA with a planned gift,
please contact Vice President for Advancement Tim
Dougherty at (505) 750‑1227 or
tim.dougherty@UWC‑USA.org.
See www.uwc‑usa.org/waystogive for our
broker information.
GRANT: You can designate UWC‑USA as a recipi‑
ent of a grant from a family foundation, charitable
gift, or donor‑advised gift fund.
MATCHING GIFT: Many organizations match chari‑
table gifts of employees, spouses, directors, or retirees.
Please request a matching gift form from your per‑
sonnel office and send it with your gift to UWC‑USA.
To see whether your employer has a matching gift
program, use our search tool on the upper right of the
online‑giving page, www.uwc‑usa.org/give.
FOR DONORS IN THE UNITED KINGDOM
AND EUROPE: Gifts may be sent via bank transfer
to the UWC International Office in London. See
www.uwc‑usa.org/waystogive for details for the
pound, euro, and U.S. dollar accounts, as well as in‑
formation on how to register for Gift Aid (a scheme
for U.K. taxpayers, allowing donations to be worth
28 percent more at no additional cost).
UWC‑USA is a 501(c)(3) organization. Our legal name is The Armand Hammer United World College of
the American West.
For more information on how you can support UWC‑USA, please contact Vice President for Advancement
Tim Dougherty at (505) 750‑1227 or tim.dougherty@uwc‑usa.org.
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