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I think the trustees of Exeter might’ve had a pariticularly pessimistic view on the prospect of the financial market, so they reacted quite aggressively on cutting back on FA for the 2009 admission season (down from 50%+ the prior year to 20% ish). It was a natural and understandable reaction, but if you ask the families who applied for FA from Exeter in 2009 (and those WL’ed or denied “A1s” if they knew they were), they might feel differently. So, at the end of the day, it is the philosphy and priorities of the board that make a difference in the direction of the school policies, and for any policy/initiative there’s always yaysayers and naysayers.</p>