If Miami Palmetto Senior High had a Hall of Fame for its alumni supporters, Christopher Sanderson would top the list.
While the school has many graduates that have gone on to fame and fortune, Sanderson stands out for his generous gifts of not just money, but time. With cash and in-kind donations now approaching $20,000, he is the singular largest individual donor to Miami Palmetto Senior High PTSA in the school’s 50-plus-year history.
This spring alone, the owner of Sanderson Test Prep sponsored a SAT Boot Camp that benefitted the school’s PTSA, matched up to $2,000 in donations to the PTSA’s “Double Your Love” fundraising campaign in February, and participated as a sponsor in its March Luck o’ the Panther Silent Auction. He donated a record-breaking $13,500 in 2015 for a dedicated computer testing suite with 50 workstations, and conducts practice ACT/SAT tests twice a year.
“We are so thankful to have Mr. Sanderson’s support,” said Palmetto principal Victoria Dobbs. “It is truly gratifying to have alumni take an interest and give back to their high school. It says a lot about their experience here, and the value that they place on it.”
Sanderson, Palmetto Class of 2000, realized when he arrived that fall at Notre Dame that his public education at Palmetto Senior had prepared him just as well for the elite university. Sanderson now owns and operates the successful multi-location Sanderson Test Prep, offering private and group tutoring to maximize student success on college undergraduate and graduate admissions tests. For Sanderson, offering the PTSA programs that assist college-bound students is a natural fit. The new Boot Camp he created for Palmetto’s PTSA was a condensed version of his more in-depth tutoring programs.
“I love to contribute all that I can to my alma mater,” Sanderson said. “I’ve been really impressed with the student interaction at these events. Their high level of engagement and the quality of the questions they ask reflects well on the school. You can tell they are self-motivated, it’s not just mom and dad making them attend.”
The recent three-hour SAT Boot Camp, held at Ludovici Park in meeting space donated by the Village of Palmetto Bay, attracted a large group. Sanderson donated half of the special discounted program rate of $100 per student to the PTSA.
PTSA Board members Christina Hugh and Juliana Rhodes, who coordinated the Boot Camp, added that the PTSA is looking forward to offering more SAT/ACT Boot Camps in the 2017-18 school year because Sanderson has agreed to continue his support of the school.
