On Jan. 13, 2025, the ETHS Board of Education unanimously approved a $7 million donation from alum Leonard Schaeffer. Schaeffer graduated in the class of 1963 and has spent his years as an alumnus contributing to many philanthropic efforts, including donating to schools such as ETHS and the University of Southern California.
The money will be used as part of the ETHS’s overall goal to renovate the arts wing and will be paid over three installments, the final coming in 2027. Following the final payment, the auditorium will be called the Leonard D. Schaeffer Center for the Performing Arts.
Schaeffer set the record with the largest-ever donation to the ETHS Foundation, but this act was not his first charitable donation to the school. In 2015, Schaeffer gave $500,000 to the school to refurbish the planetarium and add a 3-D theater, which is now called the Leonard D. Schaeffer Theater.
“[Scaeffer] has been an incredible support for ETHS and our programs and facilities in the past,” said Director of Arts and Innovation Nicholas Gehl. “One of the projects [Schaeffer] is going to help with is replacing some of the seats in [the auditorium] which will help make the space feel more up to date.”
Despite the change in name of the auditorium, Schaeffer’s donation will not exclusively focus on the space.
“We’re in the early stages of a plan for a pretty significant renovation, primarily for the arts wing,” Gehl said. “Anybody walking into the wing can tell that it’s the most out-of-date area in the building, so after [the renovation], students are going to feel a sense of renewal. I think students have already experienced some of that when the Hub and Alumni Hall were redone.”
Though the projects are for the betterment of the ETHS community as a whole, students involved in the theater program will reap additional benefits.
“I have been active with both acting and tech projects at ETHS and I have seen lots of places where [the donation] could go to use,” said senior Ethan Arnold. “All of the theatre spaces should be deep-cleaned, specifically around the Upstairs Theater since that’s the most used space. [The money] could also be used on some newer technology, like microphones and lights.”
Along with the modernization of the arts wing and developments to theater spaces, the Arts and Innovation Department also plans to use the money to create spaces for all types of students to thrive creatively.
“We have plans for a new industrial kitchen—a kitchen that reflects one you’d see in a restaurant. It will offer our advanced culinary students to be in an industry space which will hopefully prepare them into moving on into a career,” Gehl said.
Schaeffer’s donation came as a result of a quiet fundraising effort that began in January 2024. The goal of the campaign is to raise an overall total of $48 million for the arts wing.
The construction is set to begin in the summer after the 2024-2025 school year comes to an end and continue for the next three to five years. All renovations are planned to happen over the summer so as to not have any major disruptions to the student experience.
