The ACS Foundation
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"The key
vision behind The ACS Foundation is to create
an Endowment Fund that will grow its principal
over the ages ....." |
ACS celebrated its 126th Founder’s Day earlier this year. With each passing year many ACSians are reminded of the privilege it was to have been on the receiving end of this “Grand Endeavour” as students. Our time in school was short in the scheme of things, but the impact on our character, friendships and the path of our lives has been immeasurable.
Over the span of more than a century, the ACS family has grown from 13 boys in an Amoy Street shophouse to over 10,000 students and 1,000 staff in 7 schools. With all the great changes the world has seen over that time, there are some aspects of ACS that have remained constant - the Methodist Church, the dedicated teaching staff and the desire to deliver a high quality and well rounded education steeped in Christian Values.
 ACS was not created by decree or diktat. It has been the confluence of the godly leadership of Rev William Oldham of the Methodist Church and of visionary and dedicated educators and the Methodist Church, generous benefactors and passionate alumni that built ACS through the years. At ACS, we celebrate and nurture the individual whatever his or her strengths. Developing individuals of good character, morals and leadership has been our hallmark. However, the real strength of ACS has been the deep seated but quiet recognition that we are all part of something bigger than ourselves.
At various points along its 126 year journey, important milestones, decisions and contributions in various forms have collectively shaped ACS. Despite all its successes, we remain acutely aware that the ACS motto “The Best is Yet to Be” reminds us not to rest on our laurels, but to continue ever upward and onward in our constant quest to improve.
In this spirit, on Founder’s Day 2011, to commemorate our 125th Anniversary, the ACS Board of Governors established
The Anglo-Chinese Schools Foundation (ACS Foundation).
 ACS alumni are no strangers to fund raising. However, the vision of
The ACS Foundation is different from our previous fund raising efforts. The key vision behind
The ACS Foundation is to create an Endowment Fund that will grow its principal over the ages in order to generate a sustainable and growing income stream to fund programmes across all the ACS schools. In this way, it is hoped that
The ACS Foundation will become a key pillar to help reinforce and support the ACS tradition of a well-rounded education and foster the ONE ACS
spirit.
The ACS Foundation will complement the fund-raising efforts of the individual ACS schools which generally focus on school and project specific needs.
As the next 125 years of the ACS story is written, we foresee that the schools’ needs are likely to change over time as we strive to continue to deliver an all-rounded education in an increasingly complex and competitive world.
The Board of Directors of The ACS Foundation currently consists of almost a full subset of the ACS Board of Governors. This is deliberate as it gives it unique insight into the areas of the ACS family’s needs. Proceeds from the Foundation will be used to support the schools, students, staff and alumni in a variety of programmes. To ensure programmes are effective and remain relevant to the schools,
The ACS Foundation will collaborate with the 6 ACS schools to identify the prevailing needs of the schools.
 Based on initial discussions with the schools, these programmes are envisaged to fall into the areas of Special Needs Training and Resources, Staff Continuous Education and Skills Upgrading, Student Enrichment, Life-skills, Education and Career Counseling Resources, Community Projects and Improvement of Teaching Equipment and Learning Aids.
At this time, The ACS Foundation is not likely to fund the construction of buildings as this is best done by each school on a specific project basis. To ensure
The ACS Foundation remains relevant and responsive to the needs of the school, the programmes will be reviewed regularly, updated or changed where necessary, and approved by
The ACS Foundation Board.
In terms of formal structure,
The ACS Foundation has two funds: the Endowment Fund, and the IPC Fund which is an approved “grantmaker” (“IPC” stands for Institution of Public Character). Growing the Endowment Fund is the primary focus of the Foundation. However, recognising that tax deductibility may be important to some donors, we have also created the IPC Fund for which donors will enjoy a 2.5x tax deduction benefit.
As an approved “grantmaker”, the IPC Fund is required to disburse all donations within 5 years of receipt. Thus, while the IPC Fund will be helpful in funding programmes in the short term, we would not be able to grow its principal over time like an Endowment Fund which is the primary goal of
The ACS Foundation.
 By
creating both the Endowment Fund and the IPC
Fund we are giving donors choice. To meet the
original vision of the Endowment, we hope to
encourage donors to give serious thought to
contributing primarily to the Endowment, or
perhaps in some ratio between the Endowment and
the IPC. Donors who pay little or no taxes as a matter of course and thus derive little or no benefit from an IPC donation, might consider giving to the Endowment Fund to help meet the primary vision of the Foundation. Having said that, all donations are valuable and cherished and donations to the IPC will certainly be an important source of funding for the programmes in the shorter term.
As The ACS Foundation emerges from its teething stage, we look forward to growing alongside the ACS Family and adapting to its evolving needs. We have been blessed by some early donations and pledges which combined, take us more than a quarter the way towards our Endowment target of S$20 million. We are immensely grateful for the strong support we have seen so far. We ask for your support in keeping our ACS legacy and spirit alive through giving to the next generation of ACSians and spreading the word on this new initiative that will play an important part of the “Grand
Endeavour”. Please visit our website www.theacsfoundation.org for more information.
 Allow me to end with some acknow-ledgements. The ACS Foundation would not exist without our Chairman of the Board of Governors,
Richard Seow’s original vision and push for this initiative and the ACS Board of Governors’ guidance and support. We must also thank
Vivien Yui for being instrumental in guiding us through the formal creation of
The ACS Foundation.
Joy-marie Toh, who should be no stranger to many of you through her involvement in the Old Boys’ Association, is the General Manager of the Foundation and has been at the helm shepherding the many moving pieces of the birth and growth of the Foundation.
Seet Eng Neo who has a wealth of experience supporting the ACS Board of Governors is our Administrator who ensures the smooth running of the organization.
The Best is Yet to Be!
Olivier Lim
Treasurer, The ACS Foundation &
Member of the
ACS Board of Governors |
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