Norwich ― The Norwich Free Academy Foundation recently gave a public presentation highlighting the unique, historic status of NFA as both a privately endowed academy and the designated public high school for eight area school districts.

The foundation also shared the balance of its endowment ― $78.8 million ― publicly for the first time.

It was the first NFA annual meeting that did not close the doors to members of the press and non-NFA officials for the foundation’s financial report. Board of Trustees Chairman David Kalla said he made the decision to keep the meeting open to share what he considered public information.

Founded in 1854, the academy has relied on support from philanthropic founders and supporters from the start. Norwich and seven smaller surrounding town school districts pay per-student tuition to NFA as their designated public high school.

The NFA Foundation is the private endowment arm that raises money to support the academy. The endowment totaled $78.8 million, as of June 30, NFA Foundation Executive Director Kathy McCarthy told corporators and trustees Thursday at Slater Auditorium.

She said 36% of the total is unrestricted, 29% reserved for scholarships and 35% for specific program support.

McCarthy told the dozens of corporators and NFA officials present that the fund had an 8.1% gain last year. A foundation investment committee meets monthly to decide how to invest the money in the fund, McCarthy said. Donors gave just under $1 million last year and $5.3 million over the past three years.

The foundation gives more than $1 million per year as a direct tuition subsidy in the NFA operating budget and funds specific academics and classroom equipment, art programs, theater, sports, Slater Museum, facilities and campus amenities.

McCarthy listed a few examples: The Class of 1973 gave $125,000 to establish an endowment to help students experiencing housing insecurity. A member of the Class of 1960 donated $100,000 per year for the past three years to take care of physics equipment, art fees and scholarships for tuition-paying arts students. A Class of 1992 graduate purchased uniforms for the entire marching band, McCarthy said.

Four months into his tenure as Norwich Free Academy head of school, Nathan Quesnel turned to the experts in the room to help him learn NFA history, appreciate its legacy and plan for the future.

Addressing his first annual meeting of the NFA Board of Corporators and Board of Trustees, Quesnel on Thursday invited the dozens of alumni and supporters present to walk with him around campus, have lunch in the campus restaurant, The Brickview, and to show him all the secret places where they would “sneak away and hide,” when they were students at the expansive college-like campus.

“I hope you take me up on it,” Quesnel said. “I have no greater pride than to show off this place and to show you around this place. And part of that is, I’m just excited to walk it, to see it, being here on a daily basis and seeing our kids on a daily basis.”

Quesnel said the academy has a busy year in progress. The Board of Trustees is working on annual and five-year plans for academic achievement based on the goal that students of all academic abilities achieve their highest potential.

“We want those students to achieve at their potential,” Quesnel said. “We want them to grasp as much of life and as much of learning they possibly can grasp.”

NFA last week hosted a team of evaluators from the New England Association of Schools and Colleges for the academy’s 10-year accreditation review. The team met with the NFA corporators and trustees prior to Thursday’s annual meeting. Quesnel said he hopes to receive the team’s report in late December.

A third major task this year is renegotiating the master agreement between NFA and the eight partner town school districts. The districts have requested to negotiate a new five-year agreement, rather than renew the current contract that expires June 30, 2025. Quesnel said the board hopes to finalize a new agreement by spring.

c.bessette@theday.com