Five Indicators Every Independent School Should Track and Leverage

Introduction

While independent schools vary in mission and model, the fundamentals of financial health are remarkably consistent. This article will present five essential indicators that every independent school head, trustee, and senior leader should have “at the ready,” – figures that not only describe a school’s fiscal condition but also serve as clear, confidence-building talking points with trustees, faculty, and families. Drawing on my experience at Currey Ingram Academy, SAIS’s Meridian Dashboard, NAIS’s DASL, and public benchmarks, this piece will outline how to understand, measure, and communicate institutional strength.

Purpose & Relevance

Independent school heads are increasingly expected to be both educational leaders and data-savvy CEOs. Yet, amidst the sea of reports, surveys, and dashboards, it is understandable that it is a struggle to identify which numbers matter most. Hopefully, this article offers clarity by describing five financial and operational indicators of school health – benchmarks that can guide decisions, strengthen narratives, and help schools plan sustainably.¹

A subsidiary objective of this article is to equip independent school heads and senior administrators with clear, actionable ideas for strengthening institutional stability and transparency.

• A List of “Must-Have” Financial and Operational Indicators: The article will delineate five critical benchmarks that serve as leading indicators of an independent school’s fiscal health, operational efficiency, and long-term sustainability. 
• Practical Guidance on Data Sourcing, Interpretation, and Strategic Application: This article highlights hands-on instructions for administrators on where to find the raw data for each of the five indicators, and offer thoughts on how to display and use this data to make informed strategic decisions regarding tuition setting, faculty compensation, and capital planning.
• Institutional Storytelling Grounded in Truth and Transparency: The creation of a framework for translating financial and operational data into compelling, honest, and persuasive narratives enables heads to communicate the school’s financial realities – both strengths and challenges – to key stakeholders (trustees, parents, prospective families, and faculty). By grounding the school’s “story” in verifiable facts and transparent metrics, administrators can build deeper trust, foster a culture of shared stewardship, and secure buy-in for difficult but necessary strategic initiatives. This empowers leaders to move from simply reporting data to leveraging it to advance the mission and sustain long-term vitality.

In short, a head of school is more effective when prepared with the right indicators at the right time, whether addressing a board, a donor, a parent, or your school’s leadership. The following metrics can be trusted touchstones.

Indicator #1: Median Teacher Salary

• Why It Matters: Aligning with or exceeding benchmarks supports recruitment, retention, and morale.
• Definition: The midpoint salary for all full-time teaching faculty.
• Data: The Meridian Dashboard, a key component of SAIS’s data benchmarking services, is designed to help independent school leaders translate complex financial and operational data into clear, persuasive narratives. It provides the essential, verifiable metrics needed to track and communicate institutional strength, most notably for Indicator #1: Median Teacher Salary.
  • The teacher salaries dashboard within Meridian helps identify salary competitiveness, an activity essential for robust recruitment, high retention rates, and maintaining faculty morale. Users can select a specific teacher experience level (e.g., “New teachers” or “Master’s degree + 10 years experience”) and view the corresponding salary distribution for the selected peer groups.
  • To ensure comparisons are relevant, the dashboard enables schools to benchmark their compensation against local competitors. Users can see how their defined salary range for a specific experience level compares to their local public school salary scales.
  • Furthermore, the platform outlines the factors schools prioritize when setting annual compensation, including years of teaching experience, cost-of-living adjustments, the level of college degree, and the use of an established school-based salary step system.
  • This salary data is complemented by the School Characteristics Dashboard, which provides filters needed to define a school’s appropriate peer set. Administrators can filter data by multiple institutional criteria, including school setting, enrollment, boarding/day status, religious affiliation, and operating budget.
  • By combining granular salary data with specific demographic and financial characteristics, the Meridian Dashboard empowers administrators to move beyond general reporting to make informed strategic decisions regarding faculty compensation and institutional stability at their schools. Thus, leading to…

Aspirational Talking Points

• “We are at or above the median for the local market.”
• “We are on par with schools with similar missions.”
• “We are on par with—or better than—our local public district.”
• “Our median salary is intentionally set to retain strong faculty, not constantly replace them.”

Indicator #2: Hard Income from Tuition and Fees Covers Operational Expenses

• Definition: Core revenue fully funds annual operating costs without reliance on fundraising.
• Why It Matters: Indicates the highest level of financial sustainability and allows philanthropic income to fund mission expansion rather than maintenance. With tuition and fees alone covering operating costs, a school can transform how we frame advancement efforts.
• Data: The chart below shows the median annual revenue from just tuition and fees (Hard Income) for NAIS and SAIS schools versus the median annual operating expenses over the past 10 years. You see that
  • NAIS and SAIS schools consistently run deficits, according to this analysis. That is, most schools need additional revenue sources (e.g., fundraising) to mitigate deficits and/or achieve a net operating surplus.²
  • SAIS schools are less able compared with all NAIS schools to cover their operating expenses with tuition and fees alone.
  • The trend has intensified over the past 2-3 years.

How do you compare to these benchmarks? What other benchmark group is relevant for you?

• Aspirational Talking Point “Our tuition and fees fully cover the cost of educating a student.”

Indicator #3: Our Class Sizes are as Good as or Better Than Competitors

• Definition: The average number of students per classroom.
• Why It Matters: Reinforces the school’s value proposition and learning model while supporting marketing and admissions efforts. Maintaining low ratios is both a pedagogical commitment and a key differentiator in your market.
• Data: The chart below shows actual data from the past 10 years comparing median class sizes for all SAIS schools. You see that
  • SAIS schools, across all divisions, have an average class size of close to 15 students. 
  • Grades 9-12, perhaps surprisingly, have slightly fewer students per class. This is even more the case in the past 2-3 years.

How do you compare to these benchmarks? What other benchmark group is relevant for you?

• Aspirational Talking Point: “Our class sizes remain smaller than those of competitor schools.”

Indicator #4: Tuition Increases Below Competitors and/or Below COI

• Definition: Multi-year analysis of percentage increases in tuition versus competitors and the Cost of Inflation (COI).
• Why It Matters: Demonstrates financial discipline and values stewardship to families and trustees. Tuition stewardship supports enrollment growth and strengthens perceptions of value.
• Data: The chart below presents data from the past 10 years on median tuition increases for NAIS and SAIS schools.³ You see that
  • NAIS and SAIS have a similar pattern of median tuition increases over the past 10 years.
  • NAIS and SAIS have similar average median increases over the past 10 years:
    • NAIS = 3.93% / SAIS = 3.91%.
  • The percent increase in the COI has been lower than the percent increase in tuition in 8 of 10 years, with one ordinary exception (2021-2022) and one dramatic exception (2022-2023).  
  • The average median increase in COI over 10 years is 3.15%.

How do you compare to these benchmarks? What other benchmark group is relevant for you?

• Aspirational Talking Point: “Our tuition increases have remained below market and/or inflation for the past ‘X’ years.”

Indicator #5: “Overall Satisfaction” Rating at or Above Benchmarks

• Definition: Overall Satisfaction is the “master question” from your school’s parent survey.
• Why It Matters: Satisfaction is a leading indicator of retention and referrals. We’ve tracked parent satisfaction for over a decade, tying the feedback directly to faculty evaluation, communications strategy, and program innovation.
• Data Source: Internal survey data through a tool like Survey Monkey, SAIS’s Community Feedback Survey, or SAIS’s Net Promoter Score Survey. Below, you’ll see the overall satisfaction ratings from our annual Parent Satisfaction Survey over 12 years. Of note, this year’s rating is in yellow, and the approximate average rating⁴ for all NAIS schools is in blue.

• Aspirational Talking Point “Our overall parent satisfaction exceeds national benchmarks.” 

Conclusion – “Progress is Power”

Not every school will hit all five targets. But the act of identifying, tracking, and communicating progress toward them is powerful in itself. These benchmarks serve as both a compass and a conversation—shaping strategy, guiding trustees and affirming to every stakeholder that the school is well-led, mission-driven, and data-informed.

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¹ The reader should note that although these five indicators are important markers, their selection is not meant to be inclusive of all the essential indicators.
² It should be noted that of the five Indicators in this report, this is probably the most aspirational. According to Independent School Management (ISM) only about 10-20 percent of independent schools achieve this benchmark.
³ I did not include NAIS schools in this comparison because they did not vary all that much from SAIS schools and the graphic was a little too cumbersome.
⁴  This is based on the work of a colleague of mine who has done survey work with hundreds of independent schools over the past 30 years and always includes an “Overall Satisfaction” rating. 

Jeffrey Mitchell, Head of School, Currey Ingram Academy