How’d we get here?
Like other private schools both local and across the country, each year the Taylor School Board of Trustees decides on tuition rates for the coming year. Our tuition increases have always been reasonable but had some variability. Contracts have been provided annually, sent out in the Spring asking families to commit to the following academic year at the new tuition rate.
Like all schools, ours faces the challenge of ever-increasing operating costs, the most important of which is that needed to attract and maintain our creative, supportive, and dedicated faculty and staff. But the last few years have been especially unpredictable, and we have heard from families that it would be helpful if they knew ahead of time what the tuition cost would be so that they could better manage their family budget. The Taylor School mission statement reads, in part, that we will challenge students…to succeed as critical thinkers, lifelong learners, and citizens of a diverse and changing world. The academic and social environment necessary to ensure this is possible only exists within a strong community. We are all in this together — parents, students, teachers, staff, the Board of Trustees, and community supporters alike.
So, in order to support the needs of both the school and our families and to further cement the bonds of the community we all value, we put pen to paper to construct a new tuition model that was offered for the 2022-2023 school year.
How will it work?
Families will have the option to choose:
The standard annual contract they’ve known for years. The tuition will continue to be established by the Board of Trustees annually. Families who choose the annual contract will be making a one-year commitment to remain at the school and pay the annual market rate increase determined by the Board. The annual market rate increase will exceed the 1% increase in the divisional contract.
or
A divisional contract that allows the family to commit to the school for the duration of the time that your child is in a particular division. The Taylor School has two divisions: Elementary Explorers (1st-4th grades) and Middle School Scholars (5th-8th grades). Families who choose a divisional contract will be able to lock in a 1% tuition increase until your child completes the division. When a child completes elementary school and moves into middle school, tuition will reset at market rates and families can again opt for an annual contract or the Middle School Scholars divisional contract.
What if we don’t finish out the divisional contract?
Our stability as a school and a community is dependent upon the mutual commitment between us and the families who entrust us with their children. As such, both the annual and continuing divisional contracts are constructed assuming that the families who enter into them will continue at the Taylor School for the duration of the contract. As has always been the case, any family who signs and returns an annual contract will be expected to meet the obligations of that contract for the one year.
Similarly, families who elect a divisional contract are making a commitment to remain at Taylor through the end of the division (4th or 8th grade, as applicable). Should a family choose to leave Taylor before the end of the divisional contract, the contract will automatically revert to an annual contract and the family will be responsible for the difference between the annual market rate and the divisional contract 1% increase back to the beginning of the divisional contract term.
Example:
Ari signs an Elementary Explorers Divisional Contract when her child is in first grade, committing to remain at Taylor School through 4th grade at a 1% tuition increase per year. However, the family chooses to leave Taylor School at the end of the 3rd grade. The table below reflects the difference between the tuition rates for the divisional and annual contract.
Since Ari will not be fulfilling the divisional contract commitment, it will automatically revert to an annual contract and Ari will owe the difference, $1,877 in this example.
There will be certain conditional exceptions that will allow a family who had previously committed to a divisional contract to leave the school and just finish paying that year’s tuition but not owe the difference between the divisional contract and market rates. Those are (a) relocation more than 100 miles from the Taylor School campus the child attended or (b) death of a parent or student.
Let’s take a look at some examples:
Let’s take a look at some examples:
DEON AND ALISHA
Deon and Alisha’s child will transfer into Taylor School for 5th grade. Affordability and stability are important to them, so they have decided to choose the Middle School Scholars divisional contract. They’ve been told that the cost for 5th grade will be $14,800. In choosing the divisional contract, they know that they are making a commitment to keep their child at Taylor through 8th grade, but they also know that the tuition will only increase by 1% per year. They love the fact that they know what their tuition costs will be for the next four years and can budget for it.
BEN AND SAM
Ben’s child, Sam, currently attends 1st grade. Ben has decided that Sam will continue to attend the Taylor School for 2nd grade, but he’s not sure about beyond that because they are considering moving to be closer to Ben’s parents. The Board of Trustees has announced that the tuition increase for Sam’s 2nd grade year will be 5%. Ben knows that he could choose the Elementary Explorers contract and lock in a 1% per year increase until Sam finishes 4th grade, but since he’s not sure if they are staying in the area, Ben chooses the annual contract for now. He knows he will pay the 5% increase, but he’s only committing to 2nd grade.
COLLEEN AND JAMIE
Colleen and Jaime have two children at Taylor School. Riley is entering 2nd grade, and Finn is entering 6th. They know that the kids will be staying at Taylor for at least three more years until Finn completes 8th grade. So, they choose continuing divisional contracts for them both, locking in the 1% per year tuition increase. They aren’t sure if Riley will continue to Taylor’s middle school or enter public school with Finn at that point, but they figure they will cross that bridge when they come to it. Since the Elementary Explorers and Middle School Scholars are separate divisional contracts, they can decide after Riley completes the elementary division.
We realize that many factors go into deciding whether to invest in private school education for your child, including the financial commitment. The Susan Odell Taylor School has always been uncompromising in our promise to provide an exceptional educational experience, while also ensuring that our tuition remains affordable. In keeping with those goals, we are happy to offer a new Tuition Guarantee Program.