4% Increase in Tuition
The median Tuition & Fee increase among INDEX Schools this year was 4%, a notable departure from the 3.5% median annual price increases of the last several years.
2% Drop in Tuition Discounting
For the second year in a row, the median Tuition Discount (Financial Aid as a Percentage of Gross Tuition Revenue) has dropped, and although a 2% drop is small, anything that is not an increase is notable. The drop is due to a decrease in both the percentage of aid recipients and percentage of tuition aid awarded.
10% Climb in Annual Giving Contribution
Since the onset of the pandemic, the average Annual Giving Contribution (Annual Giving/Operating Expense) has climbed 10%, from 6% in 2019-20 to 6.6% in 2021-22. Also notable is that the Annual Giving Contribution ratio is at its highest level in 10 years.
37% Increase in Employee Attrition
Employee attrition climbed 37% in the 2 years since the pandemic. In 2019-20, the average INDEX School employee attrition rate was 8.7%, and last school year it reached 11.9%. Attrition seems to be highest in the lower grades, as evidenced by the very high teacher attrition rates (17%) among INDEX Elementary Schools.
10 Direct Reports to HOS
A recent INDEX member survey shows that the Head of School has an average of 10 direct reports. With 19 schools responding, roughly half said that the entire Senior Leadership Team reported to the Head (which also means that in half the schools, the entire Senior Leadership Team does not report to the Head.)