A recent draft report, “Educator Sexual Misconduct: A Synthesis of Existing Literature,” commissioned by the U.S. Education Department, concludes that, while far too little is known about the prevalence of sexual misconduct by school employees, likely millions of children—including those in private institutions—are being affected by such abuse during their school years. Although critics of the report say the numbers may be “a bit extreme,” the author maintains the report’s credibility, stressing that at the very least, the report shows that further study is needed, and that the issue of sexual abuse in schools cannot be taken lightly. ISM has long recommended that schools take clear steps toward preventing sexual abuse—both for the sake of their students and the long-term well-being of their institutions

When you know that a complex change is about to be presented at your school—maybe through a new strategic plan, the intent to introduce technology in a significant way, the addition of a new division, the building of a new art center, the reinvention of teaching practices in the middle school, or the production of a Parent Education Plan, as examples—focus not on the change itself, but on how that change is going to be implemented by real people.

In October 2002, The National Center for Education Statistics released Projections of Education Statistics to 2012, Thirty-first Edition. Included in those projections were predictions regarding private school enrollment. (See the accompanying table, “Enrollment in Private Schools: 2000-2012.”) Consider the following points as you revisit your planning process this year.

Private-independent schools annually wrestle with complex financial issues that center on the question of tuition. Trustees, Heads, and Business Managers often find themselves asking, “How can we keep our school affordable?” ISM believes this is the wrong question to ask if one of your school’s strategic goals is to maintain long-term financial viability. The proper question is, “How can we keep our school accessible?”

ISM has long stressed the fundamental importance of Board-level strategic planning, coupled with annual Board (and administration) agenda-setting, as being critical for a school to sustain long-term programmatic excellence. This set of core ideas collectively forms ISM’s Stability Marker No. 2: “Stable schools will have ‘strategic’ Boards.” These tenets must be linked explicitly to such organizational practices as Board profiling (itself on the second-tier of the ISM Stability Markers®), new-Trustee orientation, bylaw revision, formation of a strong Committee on Trustees, and Board self-evaluation.

During the Obama administration’s first 100 days in office, several initiatives became law that have had an impact on private-independent schools. One bill of interest to employers, the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA), appears likely to come before Congress this summer but has received little attention in the private school community. As EFCA may significantly impact the way school employees and administrators interact, this article highlights the main features of the bill, considers key ramifications, and recommends ways to positively reinforce elements of your school culture that could be affected by EFCA.

For private-­independent schools, hard income should be fundamental to attempt to fund operating expenses (including debt service and depreciation) from hard income—the term ISM uses to group tuition revenues, other fee sources, and interest/investment income. Our research suggests that this is a frequent occurrence.

From October 2007 to March 2008, ISM conducted perhaps the largest survey ever of private-independent school parents. Over 21,800 families from 37 schools were invited to participate in the online survey and 7,986 responded. This article focuses on parental income and the ability to pay tuition, as well as the differences in the use of scholarships and financial aid in these schools.

Each year, Moody’s Investors Service rates private-independent schools and the outlook for their ability to sustain debt (and, therefore, the advisability of an investor to support that debt). In the most recent ratings of the 52 schools it currently tracks, the service assigned stable outlooks to 94% of the schools, a positive outlook to 2%, and to 4%, a negative outlook.

In difficult economic times, schools with declining enrollments or other financial pressures may feel the need to downsize their faculty and staff. ISM cautions schools to carefully consider the significant negative impact that downsizing can have on a school’s culture. When downsizing cannot be avoided, however, it is vital that a school conduct this process in a way that is legally compliant, doesn’t provoke discrimination claims, and attempts to minimize the negative cultural aspects as much as possible.