淫人色欲社 has released its , delivered by its 10th Head of School, Brian Sullivan, marking a defining moment in the School鈥檚 history and formally launching , the most ambitious financial endeavor in the School鈥檚 103-year history.

Recorded in St. Michael鈥檚 Chapel, the address reflects on the School鈥檚 momentum and outlines a clear and definitive path forward. 鈥淎s South Kent enters its second century, our mission to form young men of character, resilience, and purpose remains as vital today as it was in 1923,鈥� Sullivan shared. 鈥淎t the midpoint of my third year as Head of School, I am deeply encouraged by the momentum across the Hillside.鈥�

That momentum includes record growth in The South Kent Fund, the highest boarding enrollment in the School鈥檚 history, expanded academic and co-curricular offerings, and a revitalized North Campus now serving as a living classroom. Sullivan emphasized that these gains are not accidental, but the result of a dedicated community working quietly and steadily to ensure the School is prepared not only to endure, but to lead.

The address also introduces The South Kent Initiative, a multi-year effort designed to position the School for long-term, sustainable growth by investing in its people, programs, and place. As of February 2026, South Kent has already raised $28 million in gifts and future commitments toward the Initiative, with $17 million remaining to reach its goal.

鈥淭his is a moment of shared responsibility,鈥� Sullivan noted in his remarks. 鈥淥ne that calls for thoughtful investment in our people, programs, and place.鈥� To that end, the School announced that all funds raised between now and June 30, 2028 will count toward The South Kent Initiative, including gifts made during , taking place on Tuesday, February 24.

With this announcement, South Kent invites alumni, parents, grandparents, friends, and community partners to participate in shaping the School鈥檚 next chapter. 鈥淲ith your partnership,鈥� Sullivan said, 鈥渨e can continue building on our proud legacy and help write the next chapter of South Kent鈥檚 storied Hillside.鈥�

the 2026 State of the School Address.

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& check out the below results for 2024’s campaign!

From all of us here on the Hillside, we thank you for your dedication, commitment, and generosity, which allow us to continue to foster a community of learning and growth for our students.

Please join the South Kent community on April 9^th聽for our Day of Giving, .聽This annual event is an opportunity for alumni, parents and friends to come together and make a difference in the lives of our students and the future of our school. No matter the size, every gift will directly impact the educational experience of our students.

This year we鈥檙e excited to announce just one more way to make your gift 鈥撀�Cryptocurrency.聽Together, let’s ensure that South Kent continues to thrive as a community dedicated to excellence in education. Your support truly makes a difference.

• Early Giving: You don鈥檛 have to wait for the official campaign launch to participate in Spring for South Kent. Starting today, your gift will count towards your participation, setting the stage for success.
• Share on Social: please like and share Spring for South Kent on social.

• Cryptocurrency: Embracing innovation, we are now accepting gifts via cryptocurrency. Now, your digital assets can directly support the School and make a meaningful difference here on the Hillside. 聽Learn more.

Every donation, no matter the size, helps to shape the future of 淫人色欲社 and the lives of our students.

Stay tuned for more updates, and ways to get involved.聽 Let’s make this year our most impactful yet!

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Upon being invited to write about our decision to include South Kent in our estate plans, I began thinking about the school and all that it has meant to me.

Such thoughts led me to the SKS website where one of the first categories I saw was the daily menu. And what a menu it is. And a chef who graduated from the Culinary Institute of America. Wow. For alumni of my era that’s pretty startling.

Of course, also listed and discussed on the website, are the core values – Simplicity of Life, Self-Reliance, Directness of Purpose. Even in those long-ago days, it was something of a culture shock to find out just how seriously Sam Bartlett took the value of simplicity.

Since our diets were restricted (one box of Milk Duds on Saturday night hardly counts), I think we should be forever grateful that there were those Sunday afternoon teas. Aside from ingesting as much sugar as possible, the caring family atmosphere at the faculty homes gave us some relief from the demands and isolation of life on the Hill.

I’m sure that many remember other examples of the caring faculty that helped us. During Fourth Form, I was failing Wynn Wister’s Latin class. He tutored me at night until I eventually grasped the joys of the ablative absolute. Frankly, I don’t know which helped me more; being tutored by Wynn or sitting afterward in their living room talking with him and Sally.

That summer, I worked on the school’s summer crew with Reuben Lee. Our jobs were basically the same as the student jobs during the school year with one big difference. We had the school jeep.

Evenings and weekends we could drive to Kent or Salisbury or Danbury or wherever. We also met the Kent school summer crew and frequently arranged to get together for nights of teenage fun. In effect, we had freedom.

Absent was the feeling of being locked up. Over the years after graduating, I used to think about whether our isolation was a good or bad aspect of our education. Was the caring, supportive atmosphere of South Kent too much of a warm nest. Were we being properly prepared for our adult lives or was there a reality factor missing?

One answer I found is to look at the core values as the big picture. Like having the jeep that summer. We had our freedom, but we also had to take care of the jeep. Another example from that summer is that Sam Bartlett told me to weed all the dandelions on Fathers’ Field. A few days later, I had to leave before the end of my contract due to a family emergency. I think I may have finished part of the end zone, and I forgot to explain my departure to Sam before I left.

When I returned in September, the Old Man took me aside and asked, “When are you going to finish your weeding job?” What could I say? He was right. It took me a while to see that he was kidding, but being Sam, he was still giving me a lesson in responsibility.

Bonnie shares my love and appreciation of the school and we are pleased to name South Kent as a principal charitable beneficiary. We hope others will do the same.

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Neilson Brown, a second-generation alumnus of SKS (his father, Hobson, 鈥�34), has been an active volunteer of 淫人色欲社 for more than 25 years. He is a former chairman of the Board of Trustees. Neilson earned his bachelor鈥檚 degree from the University of North Carolina, and an MBA from Wharton. He believes in planned giving.

He and his wife Mary have included 淫人色欲社 in their estate planning. Neilson has established a specific nominal bequest in his will for SKS. Together they have agreed to name the School as a residual beneficiary of his IRA; SKS will receive a significant percentage of the then remaining principal.

Quoting Neilson, 鈥淏ecause of the double taxation of IRA benefits in a decedent鈥檚 estate, individuals should look first to their retirement plans, when considering a bequest to 淫人色欲社, and leave other assets to their heirs. It鈥檚 almost a no brainer given the tax bite involved otherwise.鈥�

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In 1947 our father was the first minister of The Church of the Good Shepherd in Austin, TX. He knew he would be relocating during the next school year and was reluctant to move while I was a senior in high school. He was considering boarding schools when someone suggested 淫人色欲社. During a phone conversation, Sam Bartlett told my father the school would accept me and my next brother, Doug, ’50, at a tuition my father could set. (I learned this much later, and it cemented my desire to help the school in any way I could.) Thus, I entered the 5th Form (not a common thing then) to repeat the 11th grade; but I only repeated one course in trigonometry. Later our third brother, Rog ’54, attended.

淫人色欲社 played a huge part in my future, preparing me for any number of things – not the least of which was my fascination with the bow ties my roommate, Del Hitch, wore. Del gave me two of his oldest and tried to show me how to tie them. I finally learned after long, arm-tiring sessions before the mirror. I’ve worn them ever since, except for my seven years in the Navy. They’ve been a bit of a trademark.

I recall many new experiences and approaches to life from my time at 淫人色欲社:

• Getting up early to help shovel snow. This was new to me as Texas had little, and I was too small to help when we lived in Arkansas and Virginia.
• Digging potatoes and collecting apples.
• Helping with farming and maintenance one summer.
• Taking the first 10 minutes of an exam to think, plan and organize before putting my pen to paper. (Thanks, Wuz – Lester Wittenberg!)
• As 6th Form truck driver, taking Bill, the cook, home most evenings, and getting the mail daily from the store/post office by the railroad tracks.
• While I am sure I had forgotten the three principles of the school – Simplicity of Life, Self-Reliance and Directness of Purpose – in looking back I feel my life has reflected these, though my wife suggests my parents already had planted these seeds. Either way, these principles undoubtedly guided me.

From South Kent I went to The College of Wooster, majoring in English History. And from there, I entered Cornell University Medical College (now called Weill Cornell Medical College) in New York City, following two uncles and an aunt who went there. I entered the US Navy after one year of residency, completed my surgical training at the Naval Hospital in Philadelphia, and spent three years at the Naval Hospital in Charleston, SC. My years in the Navy included overseas tours in the Mediterranean and four months with a surgical team on two ships in Vietnam.

I developed a solo surgical practice for 11 years in Mooresville, NC, relocated to Salisbury, NC, and, 12 years later, added a partner to start Salisbury Surgical Associates, PA. I retired from surgery in the summer of 1999.

I now enjoy my time around the house. I “make a lot of sawdust” in my garage shop and spend more time at church in the choir and with other activities. I’ve served two vestry terms at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in Salisbury, and two terms as a trustee for Hood Theological Seminary, where I now am a trustee emeritus.

Long before I had heard about the St. Michael’s Society, I planned for my estate distribution to include educational institutions. My parents gave all four of their children educations, and I felt that, having done the same for my two, approximately 50% of the residual monies in my estate could be distributed to those institutions I/we felt had played – and still play – a role in my life. South Kent tops that list. The remaining monies will be distributed among my ‘other’ charities. This will occur after the second one of us dies. Hopefully, much still will be in tax-deferred IRA accounts and will be distributed directly and hence untaxed.

淫人色欲社 is a great preparatory school. Its mission is very appropriate in today’s world. I am pleased and grateful to be able to continue to support it. I hope others will feel the same way.

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