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Nichols School - Buffalo, NY

All iN for our students

For more than 125 years, Nichols has benefited from a shared passion in the form of generous donor support and investment. Now it's our turn to create the most exceptional experience and to expand access for talented students.

Embracing challenge

To encourage our children to embrace challenge as a means to discover themselves, we must embrace a challenge of our own. We must continue to push the highest standards of educational innovation and faculty excellence and make the Nichols difference available to every student with potential.

iNclude

iNclude

We will attract the best and brightest students and provide the means for them to attend Nichols and thrive.

$18,000,000

for Nichols financial aid will allow us to admit qualified students without regard to a family’s financial circumstances. As the cost to provide a Nichols education increases, the number of students requiring financial assistance to make a Nichols education possible is increasing as well.

iNspire

iNspire

We will recruit, retain and support outstanding faculty and never lose sight of the connection between the innovation of their programs and our students' ultimate success.

$7,000,000

will provide the means to keep salaries competitive, present ongoing professional development and foster an innovative learning environment. To ensure an extraordinary student experience, we must attract and retain talented faculty and staff and challenge them with ongoing learning.

$18,000,000

for Nichols financial aid will allow us to admit qualified students without regard to a family’s financial circumstances. As the cost to provide a Nichols education increases, the number of students requiring financial assistance to make a Nichols education possible is increasing as well.

$7,000,000

will provide the means to keep salaries competitive, present ongoing professional development and foster an innovative learning environment. To ensure an extraordinary student experience, we must attract and retain talented faculty and staff and challenge them with ongoing learning.

iNnovate

iNnovate

We will enhance a campus learning environment as a setting where we can fulfill our mission to educate the whole child.

$4,000,000

will continue to improve our campus as a supportive learning space. The construction of our new Student Commons made an immediate impact on the entire Nichols community and will have a positive effect on our academic environment and scheduling. The construction is complete. Now, we seek financial support to provide innovative learning opportunities and creative programs.

iNvest

iNvest

We will grow the Nichols Fund to ensure that Nichols is a vibrant institution and a leader among independent schools in Western New York and beyond.

$6,000,000

will ensure that every day we can provide our students with rigorous academics and a wholly encouraging environment. Gifts to the Nichols Fund provide our most flexible and dependable source of funding and support salaries, extracurriculars, financial aid, innovative programming and other vital needs.

$4,000,000

will continue to improve our campus as a supportive learning space. The construction of our new Student Commons made an immediate impact on the entire Nichols community and will have a positive effect on our academic environment and scheduling. The construction is complete. Now, we seek financial support to provide innovative learning opportunities and creative programs.

$6,000,000

will ensure that every day we can provide our students with rigorous academics and a wholly encouraging environment. Gifts to the Nichols Fund provide our most flexible and dependable source of funding and support salaries, extracurriculars, financial aid, innovative programming and other vital needs.

iN the spirit

There is a unique Nichols spirit. Read more about some of the people who are ambassadors of the All iN spirit and proud members of the Nichols community.

"Our mission is to train minds, bodies and hearts for the work of life and to carry into all we do the highest ideals of character and service."

JOSEPH D. ALLEN
Second Headmaster of Nichols School


All iN is our rallying cry, but it is not a new focus or a short-term commitment. It simply captures the communal and passionate spirit that has always been part of our school and our community. We're going All iN with our bold campaign, and we invite you to do the same.

Barbara Hayes

Alumni Parent

Barbara Hayes always knew her son Arthur was gifted and needed the right environment to fulfill his potential. She decided early on that she would move mountains to find it for him. As it turned out, she only had to move to Western New York.


Barbara relocated her family and searched for the right school that could develop Arthur’s gifts. He succeeded at everything, from his studies on the sports field, to making lasting friendships. Nichols gave him the setting, the stimulation and, at one point, the scholarship to thrive.


These unique opportunities provided the foundation for Arthur’s success as co-founder and CEO of HDR Global Trading, the company behind BitMEX. Because of the role that Nichols played in his life, Arthur decided to create several scholarships to ensure that deserving students will be able to experience the excellence of a Nichols education and the lifelong benefits it brings.

Ben Gerhardt

Faculty Member & Coach

Ben Gerhardt, like all of the faculty members at Nichols, understands that the best learning often happens outside the classroom. In the case of Ben’s students studying Spanish, it is way outside the classroom.


As Chair of the language department, Ben is instrumental in the International Exchange program where Nichols students immerse themselves in host countries and international students come to Nichols from all over the world. After exchanges, students return as not only confident speakers of the language but also better citizens of the world.


Endowing programs at Nichols, like the foreign language program, will provide resources for enhanced learning experiences both inside and outside of the classroom and will allow faculty members to continue their own professional development.

Keerti '20

Student

Coming to Nichols from India as a freshman was a daunting experience for Keerti. Shy by nature and like any teenager, everything from lunch to speaking up in class brought feelings of self-consciousness. But Keerti soon came to realize that the Nichols experience was all about asking new things—of yourself.


It isn’t easy to ask yourself to do things that you’ve never done before—like speaking confidently to a group of 400 as co-president of Student Council. Yet that’s what Keerti did once she understood the unconditionally encouraging environment she was a part of. Throughout her time at Nichols, Keerti challenged herself to join many clubs and different sports teams, making lasting friendships along the way. She found her voice and her confidence, and feels ready for the journey to college and beyond. Continued support for academic and extracurricular programs will provide more opportunities for students to embrace challenge and discover their true potential.

Matt Enstice '91

Alumnus & Parent

Matt Enstice is quick to talk about the advantages the network gave him in life and his career. No, not NBC and his five-year stint working for Lorne Michaels on Saturday Night Live, but the Nichols Network that gave him the opportunity to attend Nichols and to work on the iconic show, and that continues to play a major role in his life.


As he started high school, Matt was awarded the Judgie Lytle ’64 Scholarship thanks to the generosity of Mike Keiser ‘63 and other Nichols alumni. Without it, his education—and his path in life—would have been very different. With it and the network of passionate Nichols supporters, he secured an internship at SNL and eventually became a valued member of the production staff. His entertainment experience led him back to Buffalo as the CEO of Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus working toward the city's revitalization.


Matt remains close to his mentors and friends—golfing with them, and frequently asking them for advice in both career and life. When Mike Keiser ’63 challenged the Nichols Community to raise significant funds in support of endowed and additional financial aid, Matt and his wife Jessica ’93 were among the first to say “we are All iN!”


All iN will make certain that a network of support exists for every student.