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Working toward Equitable Access and Affordability: 'How Private Schools and Microschools Seek to Serve Middle- and Low-Income Students'

Working toward Equitable Access and Affordability: 'How Private Schools and Microschools Seek to Serve Middle- and Low-Income Students'

Authors :
Bellwether Education Partners
Squire, Juliet
King, Melissa Steel
Trinidad, Justin
Source :
Bellwether Education Partners. 2019.
Publication Year :
2019

Abstract

For the past several decades, private schools have steadily served about one in ten students in the United States. However, the student population enrolled in private schools has changed. Thousands of Catholic schools, which often serve less affluent urban communities, have closed; meanwhile, tuition increases in independent schools have outpaced inflation and wage growth, making them less accessible to those with limited means. This suggests an emerging gap in affordable options and merits a fresh look at private schools that still seek to serve middle- and low-income families. In this report, the authors sought to understand the landscape of private schools that are working to remain affordable, the approaches they are taking, and how some are revisiting traditional operating models. This document provides an overview of private schools' enrollment, an analysis of the strategies private schools use to be accessible to middle- and low-income families, and an analysis of microschools, in particular. The authors identify and examine a variety of strategies private schools can use to improve affordability: (1) Subsidize cost with public funds; (2) Subsidize cost with private funds; (3) Find alternative revenue streams; and (4) Reduce expense of the model. The report ends by surfacing questions regarding the role of private schools in serving middle- and low-income students, the lessons they might hold for others, and their potential to scale and innovate.

Details

Language :
English
Database :
ERIC
Journal :
Bellwether Education Partners
Publication Type :
Report
Accession number :
ED602594
Document Type :
Reports - Evaluative<br />Numerical/Quantitative Data