“My son played football in the Quad, and my daughter swam in the pool…”

“When I enrolled at the School, I expected to receive a great education and hoped I would develop lifelong friendships. While my LBS experience delivered on both of these counts, what surprised me was the attachment I developed with the campus itself. 

I arrived in the fall of 2004 as a single parent with an 11-year-old daughter and a nine-year-old son in tow. Within the first few weeks, we discovered the pool at Taunton, where my children were frequent lap swimmers. My daughter Elizabeth, in particular, became so proficient at lap swimming that in the spring, she qualified for and swam in the Greater London private school 50m freestyle championship. 

When I had group projects or study groups in the Plowden Building, my son Andrew would sometimes accompany me, carrying a soccer ball under his arm in search of someone who wanted to take a break from studying to kick the ball around in the Quad. Many of my MiFFT2005 classmates responded with both kindness and zeal. Andrew would sometimes play one-on-one and sometimes in a multi-player mini-game. There was never a shortage of willing participants. Every so often, students from other programmes would join in for a slightly rowdier version of a mini-game before returning to their studies. 

I left London Business School with the world-class education I’d expected; it has clearly been an important part of my career. But it’s the personal connection with my classmates and the campus itself that endears the school to me. When the Advancement team reached out to me this spring, ahead of our 20th class reunion, and I heard about the renovations to the Quad and Plowden, I wanted to contribute to this project as a way to honour the warm memories which Elizabeth, Andrew and I have of our time at the School.” 

Susan has chosen to engrave a post on The Thread, a sculptural installation that celebrates alumni connection to campus. There are still some spaces left if you’re interested in doing the same. Find out more here.