Dear Innmate,

We know many of you have been traveling for the holidays and due to the urgency of the content in the email, we wanted to make sure everyone had the opportunity to read it through:

As the fall season unfolds and we prepare to give thanks alongside family and friends, we are reminded of the faithful bonds we have all forged at our home away from home, Cloister Inn. Our Club is an institution we have long held dear.

While we are hopeful that this will remain true for future generations of Princetonians, we have reached a crossroads, and the fate of our beloved club is in serious jeopardy. We are facing the very real possibility that Cloister Inn will close permanently, if we do not meet an aggressive fundraising goal by the close of 2023.

The unfortunate reality is that our membership has struggled to rebound after the school was closed during COVID. Despite running a lean operation and increasing our fundraising efforts, Cloister has had to use 90% of its reserve savings while the board and our undergraduates have worked to bolster membership and find other funding sources. We are confronting a crisis, and it is not just possible, but likely, that absent significant aid from our alumni, Cloister will close its doors. While this would be devastating for current members, it also means that we as Cloister Alumni would not have a home to come back to for Reunions and other alumni events.

The Board is pursuing multiple avenues that will help us to stay open. Along with the Club’s undergraduate leadership, we are aggressively campaigning to recruit large groups of students to join the Club. A solicitation will be going out to undergraduates to incentivize a large group to stage a “takeover.” This is a method that has worked for multiple clubs in the past, including Charter Club just a few years ago when they were on the verge of closure; they are now operating at full capacity. We’re hopeful that this will keep Cloister from closing, as the current sophomore class – who will be joining clubs this spring – is the first class to reflect Princeton’s newly increased class size. However, we won’t see a major financial impact from even a very successful takeover until the Fall of 2024. In order to stay open through next year, we need to raise $250,000 by the end of this school year.  

We are now humbly asking for your assistance. Your generous contributions are more critical than ever. Collectively, our alumni Innmates have the power to keep Cloister open so it can continue carrying on its inimitable legacy as we welcome larger sections. It could be done with a group of Innmates joining to make substantial gifts for particular Classes, or making individual large gifts. We are happy to speak with you and answer questions you may have – reach out to any of us on the Board (see below for contact info). 

Every gift matters! We hope that you will join other CI alumni that have indicated that they are stepping up to the plate–in making a generous gift to this year’s Save Cloister Campaign. You can go online to our website, www.cloisterinn.com or use the link here to contribute directly to the Club, or through the Princeton Prospect Foundation–Cloister Inn. You can also mail a check to: General Manager, Cloister Inn Club, 65 Prospect Avenue, Princeton, NJ 08540

We thank you in advance for your goodwill, compassion, and benevolence, to keep our beloved Cloister Inn alive!

With gratitude & appreciation,
The Graduate Board of Governors
Cloister Inn 

Board of Governors: