Leelanau School Hits Fundraising Goal For Auditorium Upgrades, Eyes New Community Partnerships

Performances by Interlochen students, productions by local theatre groups, film screenings, and webcasts of programming from Northwestern Michigan College’s International Affairs Forum are just a few of the opportunities the Leelanau School hopes to pursue for its on-campus auditorium now that the venue is poised to get a much-needed facelift. According to Rob Hansen, head of school for the Glen Arbor boarding academy, the school recently raised $180,000 for the first phase of a two-part auditorium renovation. Phase one will upgrade technology; a future phase will focus on improving accessibility, flooring, and seating.

“The technology hasn't been touched since the ‘80s,” Hansen says of the auditorium, which was built in 1953. “So, all the electrical wiring, the lighting, the sound, the projection, most of that stuff just isn’t working anymore.”

When it comes to student performances and academic uses, Hansen says the school can make do with the bare-bones setup; the shortcomings have been more of a roadblock in efforts to draw other programming.

“The auditorium, in our opinion, a pretty attractive space, and not just for our students,” Hansen explains. “We're a very small school, so we could never make maximum use of that auditorium. But the community is looking for spaces for performances and things, and we know that's true because people have contacted us and said, ‘Hey, do you guys have a venue we could use?’ We say yes, but then they come and look at our auditorium, and they see that the lights don’t work, or the technology isn’t there, and they say, ‘Maybe we'll look someplace else.’”

For years, Hansen has talked about turning the auditorium into more of a community asset, seeing a “strategic benefit for our students” in bringing more events to campus. “The benefit to my students is that there would be more performances there, or discussion panels, or movies – things that they could participate in,” he says. “In my view, schools need to be a place where the community is invited in, not kept out.”

Kate Olson, director of alumni and development, took the lead on the project, working with consultants to identify what would need to happen to turn the school’s dated performance space into a “state-of-the-market” venue.

“Those experts came in, climbed around our rafters, saw the space, and came up with a really firm number that, if we could raise that money, we could quickly purchase and install the equipment needed to turn our auditorium into a space worthy of 2026,” Hansen says. “That number was $180,000, and we hit that target thanks in large part to Rotary Charities of Traverse City. That grant then caught more people’s attention in the local community, and we got a few sizable contributions. And then, most recently, a past Leelanau School alum who has a lot of fondness for that space took us over the top.”

Olson says she’s finalizing the specific equipment for the space, after which the tech improvements will begin.

“The goal is to have the work done between late January and early spring,” Olson tells The Ticker. “Ideally, by the end of March or early April, everything will be in place.”

In the meantime, the Leelanau School will be reaching out to community groups including the Glen Arbor Players (which have already used the space) and other organizations that have historically looked elsewhere.

“We’ve talked to so many other groups, like Interlochen, the Glen Arbor Art Center, the League of Women Voters, the International Affairs Forum, and so forth,” Olson says. “We’re going to reconnect with them in January and start talking timelines.”

The Leelanau School doesn’t plan to use the auditorium as a money-making endeavor. Per Olson, the space will be available free of charge. But Hansen does see a financial upside to getting more people through the doors, especially as the school looks to raise another $180,000 for the second phase of renovation.

“It’s a way to get a local audience in, see the space, and give us a chance to describe the fundraising project we’re doing,” Hansen explains. “When the place is being used more frequently by the community, it gets easier to get to the $180,000 mark $100 at a time, because we can say, ‘Help us fix the chair you’re sitting in; help us with the cracked tile under your feet.’”

“The Glen Arbor Players had three shows here this year, and before each one, we took an informal poll. They had 467 audience members over the course of those three shows, and probably 95 percent of those people said they had never been on campus before,” Olson adds. “These are our neighbors, so it feels wonderful to finally have them here.”

The Leelanau School will celebrate the success of the fundraising campaign this Sunday at 2pm with a free two-man performance of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol on the auditorium stage. Those interested are asked to save their spot here.