The words “strategic” and “academic” are not comfortable partners. Academics is, by definition, an operations responsibility and rightly the province of the School Head. Strategic implies the Board is involved and has a hand in direction and planning. Still, since 2014, schools have been thinking divergently about academics and asked ISM to assist with and partner in developing strategic academic plans, and the demand for this is growing. Placing the words “strategic” and “academic” in juxtaposition could suggest that ISM’s long-held position about separating strategic and operations is compromised. In the 20th century, that would indeed have been true. Then, academics was a fairly straightforward pursuit that required schools to choose between textbooks printed in Ontario, Texas, and California and ensure that teachers were competent to use them in the classroom. The word itself had a limited reach, being typically applied to the disciplines of math, English, social studies, and science, with foreign language included as a suspicious addition. The arts were clearly not academic, and athletics were not connected to academic pursuits although there was obeisance paid to the scholar-athlete (the two words appearing in opposition to each other). In this world, teachers were polite to one another, but rarely worked together outside their silos—whether by grade or discipline. Budgets were based on last year’s expenditures. Curriculum review was incremental. Students were usually the object, not the subject, of the sentence. Rocking the boat was considered both unnecessary and opposed to tradition.

1. Already a member? Click here to login.

2. Not a member? Click here to become a member.

3. Not sure? We'll help you figure it out.

The data a school collects is often seen as primarily the domain of the Administrative Team, whose members use the data to inform decisions and drive change. When schools collect data through surveys, however, there are other interested constituents to consider. Communication before, during, and after conducting surveys is essential and must be handled carefully.

1. Already a member? Click here to login.

2. Not a member? Click here to become a member.

3. Not sure? We'll help you figure it out.

In the first article in this series, we emphasized the importance of the leadership funnel in ensuring leadership continuity through the inevitable personnel changes implicit in a volunteer leadership structure. As Chair of the COT, you already know that excellent people are the precondition for excellent performance. However, they are not sufficient. Determining what “excellent performance” is (execution) and holding committee members and Trustees accountable to that performance is equally important. This recognizes the reality that the school’s volunteer leaders have a limited amount of time to carry out their responsibilities—maybe 60–80 hours a year for a complex task. We recommend that you lead the Committee on Trustees in carrying out four tasks: self-monitoring, reminding, measuring, and maintaining accountability.

1. Already a member? Click here to login.

2. Not a member? Click here to become a member.

3. Not sure? We'll help you figure it out.

“Rainy-Day” financial aid is one of the three types of tuition assistance identified by ISM, with the other two ensuring “diversity” and “filling empty seats.” While, in theory, rainy-day aid is straightforward in definition, strategy, and budgeting concepts, in reality we have found that it’s not well understood, much less effectively put into practice. By definition, rainy-day financial aid is meant to be a short-term solution to help a family through a temporary setback (e.g., job loss, divorce, medical condition). Strategically, this type of financial aid helps to create a sense of security for families—knowing their children won’t be asked to leave without a chance to get back on their feet. Funds for this aid should be derived from tuition, endowment, or a development initiative.

1. Already a member? Click here to login.

2. Not a member? Click here to become a member.

3. Not sure? We'll help you figure it out.

In January 2015, BoardSource published Leading with Intent, a report self-described as “a comprehensive scan of nonprofit board practices, policies, and performance.” While the report is built on “data collected and analyzed dating back to 1994,” the new release is the result of a 2014 survey of more than 800 nonprofit organizations. BoardSource’s summary conclusions are succinct.

1. Already a member? Click here to login.

2. Not a member? Click here to become a member.

3. Not sure? We'll help you figure it out.

For over 35 years, ISM has posited that, when attempting to ascertain the factors that drive families to enter, stay, and leave your school, you must attend to two constituent groups: parents and students. While parents hold almost all the decision-making power when children are very young, students begin to gain influence over the decision beginning in the middle grades. This increases through upper grades such that they can have the majority of the power through high school. Knowing this parent-student dynamic and the reasons each constituency chooses a private-independent school can (and should) significantly influence how you allocate time and resources to achieve your mission, as well as how you market your school.

1. Already a member? Click here to login.

2. Not a member? Click here to become a member.

3. Not sure? We'll help you figure it out.

Each fall, ISM publishes a set of conversion factors to simplify recasting previous tuitions into current dollars. (See the accompanying table.) We continue to use the Urban Consumer Price Index (CPI-U).1 However, we also realize the CPI-U does not reflect expenditures in private-independent schools. It can only serve as a base figure. There are compelling arguments for adjusting your tuition at a rate of at least 2% above the overall inflation rate. The CPI has a built-in “productivity factor.” It assumes the workforce is increasingly productive as technology and other laborsaving developments provide greater output with fewer personnel. The more efficient a business becomes, the more it can stabilize or reduce the impact of inflation. Education, however, differs from industries in that it is people-intensive and not truly “product”-driven. Education cannot offset the effects of inflation by increased efficiency—the classroom still basically consists of a teacher and a group of students. If more students enroll, we create more sections with more teachers. Even as the demand for additional programs (and teachers) occurs, schools often refuse to remove any standing programs to lessen the budgetary crunch. Costs go up even as productivity remains static.

1. Already a member? Click here to login.

2. Not a member? Click here to become a member.

3. Not sure? We'll help you figure it out.

We've identified two strategic objectives of marketing communications as being: to sustain and strengthen enrollment using your Strategic Marketing Communications Plan and its subset, the Parent Retention and Enrollment Plan; and to promote investment in the school by giving parents confidence that the school’s plans make sense—and may even be inspirational as the school constantly renews itself through quadrennial strategic planning/strategic financial planning. While your key constituent is the parent, the center and purpose of the school—as illustrated by the school’s mission—is the student. What does it mean, therefore, to have the parent as your key constituent while still being student-centered? This requires putting into practice the following three understandings.

1. Already a member? Click here to login.

2. Not a member? Click here to become a member.

3. Not sure? We'll help you figure it out.

ISM has long urged private-independent school leaders to agree among themselves that their school operates—or intends to operate—with one of three marketplace focuses: price/value, best-product, or best-process. This article updates this concept and, in the process, provides a number of modifications and clarifications.

1. Already a member? Click here to login.

2. Not a member? Click here to become a member.

3. Not sure? We'll help you figure it out.

Graduate successes are some of the best demonstrators of your school’s program quality. They are strong, results-oriented measures of the education your school offers. Knowing that students who have attended your school have done well at the next level(s) is reassuring to parents. In short, successful graduates are proof that your school’s “process” works.

1. Already a member? Click here to login.

2. Not a member? Click here to become a member.

3. Not sure? We'll help you figure it out.