An Independent School Education: Family Perceptions of Value and Affordability
Ari Betof, Partner and Co-Founder of Mission and Data, presented a Bay Area-specific presentation around families seeking independent schooling for their children. As a professional data researcher with a background in school administration, the techniques and quality of data used to assess the theme were decidedly much more robust and accurate than the data many admissions professionals are able to pull from. Because of this, the presentation was particularly valuable and important in regards to understanding the data we have at our fingertips, and comparing it to see if the patterns and trends we rely on speak with the larger quantity of data parsed through by professionals.
Major takeaways included:
SF Bay Area will be experiencing continued population decline for young people
Census data is generally lagging
Families shared non-negotiables in schooling do not necessarily, or even frequently align with their school enrollment decision making
Families are starting to lean into schools funding their lifestyles
There is not one clear remedy around all of this combined
This was an important professional development opportunity particularly for enrollment. While the findings were not shocking to me, it was interesting to see that stated reasons for choosing an independent school oftentimes did not align with where families enrolled. While it was encouraging that a data researcher found many of the same themes I have found, it also means that the upcoming years will not be seamless when thinking about enrollment and recruitment.