An endowment is a permanent fund that supports what matters most to you, whether it is helping students thrive, supporting faculty and curriculum enhancements, or enriching our innovative programs. The principal is held in perpetuity and invested for long-term growth. A percentage of the endowment’s total market value is made available each year to support the purpose as mutually agreed upon by you and the school.

The earnings from endowments provide a permanent source of income that allows Cannon School to fulfill its mission of instilling academic excellence and personal responsibility, inspiring athletic and artistic accomplishment, and promoting a respect for diversity within a challenging and safe educational environment. The general endowment spending allocation is combined with tuition revenue and Cannon Fund gifts to operate the school on a day-to-day basis. Strong endowments enable schools like Cannon to rely on more than tuition revenue.

New endowment funds may be created with gifts of $25,000 or more.

Establishing a named fund provides a personally meaningful way for you to support Cannon.

You can establish the fund through a multi- year pledge payable within five years or a one-time gift. The Advancement Office will work with you to prepare a written endowment agreement outlining the purpose of the fund and Cannon School’s commitment to administering the fund according to your intentions. Please contact Todd Hartung, Director of Advancement, for additional information.

You can choose to support what is most meaningful to you. Some areas of interest might include:

• Need-based tuition assistance
• Faculty
• Programs
• Campus
• General endowment for advances in the school’s core mission

Cannon School works closely with its Board of Trustees to select an outside financial institution to manage its endowed funds. Based on spending limits established by the Board, a portion of the total market value is made available to support the school, and any remaining funds are reinvested to ensure the school’s financial stability for generations to come. For a named endowed fund, according to those same spending guidelines, a portion of the total market value of the fund is made available to support the purpose of the fund as defined by the donor.
 

The general endowment provides Cannon with the financial flexibility to meet future challenges and take advantage of quality enhancing opportunities that fall outside tuition and the operating budget.

The Speedway Children’s Charities Endowment for Diversity funds special scholarships for excellent students who have financial need and supports multicultural programs aimed to increase diversity awareness in the School community.

The Excellence Fund was established by the Board of Trustees to enable Cannon to be responsive to unforeseen opportunities that might not be planned for in the tuition-funded operating budget.
 

The Liles Endowment Fund was established in 2009 by George Liles, Jr. in memory of his father and long-time Cannon School supporter, Dr. George W. Liles, to provide continued operating support for Cannon.

The Richard H. Snyder Fund empowers Cannon to make improvements that are not covered by tuition or the operating budget.

The Michael Gray, Jr. Memorial Scholarship is a full-tuition scholarship available to students who demonstrate strong character, academic dedication, and financial need.

The Kimbrough Family Funds for Teaching Excellence helps fund training programs for teachers, as well supplementing salaries to enable Cannon School to continually attract and retain the highest caliber faculty.

The Marie DeHaass Endowed Fund was established in 2012 to recognize the positive and lifelong impact that school counselors have on young people. The fund provides professional development opportunities to our school counselors so they may continue to best serve the needs of our students. It also provides for an annual Maria DeHaas Speaker Series that enriches our school’s conversations on topics of importance to families.

The Dr. John G. Sirois Memorial Fund was established by Antoinette and Jean-Louis Alban Sirois, in memory of their son Dr. John G. Sirois, husband to Sheila McParlin and father of Rosemary Sirois ’10, David Sirois ’12, Juliana Sirois ’14, and James Sirois ’16. It provides a monetary award to an outstanding English student at Cannon each year.

The Fred and Opal Bryant Endowed Fund was established in 2016 and provides for the continued enhancement and beautification of the Cannon School campus landscape.

The Malmstrom Family Endowed Fund was established in 2016 by the Malmstrom family - Ivar, Susanne, Daniela '14, Emily '15, and Caroline '16. The fund provides assistance to Cannon's Academic Success and Learning Support Program developed by Upper School Learning Specialist Teresita Lloréns-Hurtado along with assistance from several Cannon School students, including Emily and Caroline Malmstrom. 

The Taylor Denny Duke Memorial Endowed Fund was established in 2018, in memory of Taylor Duke '09. The fund will provide assistance to Cannon School's baseball program. The fund will underwrite and offset the cost of equipment to families within the baseball program not covered by the School's athletic program.

Established in 2019 in memory of faculty member John Riley, who served as Cannon's Middle School science teacher from 2002 to 2019. The John Riley Endowed Fund will make travel for trips or projects that incorporate science or service more accessible to Cannon students and/or faculty so they may learn from the  intriguing people they meet, see the beauty in our world, and marvel at the surprises that await them on their journeys.

The Matthew E. Gossage Endowment was established in 2019 to enable Cannon School to provide annually a fully-funded tuition award to one student who demonstrates a passion for academic inquiry, continuous self-improvement, and servant leadership. Leadership donors will be invited to an annual luncheon with the student recipient and Mr. Gossage.

This fund provides three faculty members, as voted on by Cannon students, funding for professional development and/or classroom needs. The fund was given by the Class of 2019 as a way to honor Cannon's sixth Head of School, Mr. Matthew E. Gossage, who served Cannon from 2006 - 2019.

The Matthew “Wheels” Wheeler Endowed Athletic Fund was established in 2021 in memory of Matthew Wheeler ’19, a strong learner, thoughtful friend, dedicated family member, and passionate athlete. This fund will provide need-based support for student athletic expenses not covered by tuition to include, but not be limited to equipment, travel, sport packs, and educational support services.

The Margaret “Peg” Knox Morrison Endowment was established in 2021 to provide need-based tuition support to an Upper School student who is energized by Cannon’s mission and core values and shows a passion for their school community. Preference is given to a Concord area student, but not required. This gift is given in honor of Peg by her loving husband, John, and celebrates Peg’s involvement with the school since its inception. Peg has loved and enlivened the Cabarrus Academy and Cannon School community as a Latin teacher, mother, volunteer, fundraiser, trustee, historian, and grandmother. 

The Mary Elizabeth Morrison Endowment was established in 2023 in honor of Cannon alum Mary Elizabeth Morrison ‘19 to provide need-based support to an Upper School student who is energized by Cannon’s mission and core values and shows a passion for their school community.