Economy forces private school students' move to public schools

By Janell Ross, The Tennessean

More private school students are seeking free public school educations in the middle of a recession that makes tuition tougher for parents to pay.

As the state's unemployment rate topped 10 percent, several private and parochial schools in Middle Tennessee reported small reductions in enrollment, while others said they kept students by offering more financial aid.

Williamson County's public schools saw a 500-student influx from private schools this year, spokeswoman Lydia Glynn wrote in an e-mail.

The district decided to track the numbers because officials expected economic conditions to bring transfers from private schools. While the district did pick up private school students, it did not have as many new students move into the county as anticipated.

"Unfortunately, we have to do our budget so early that we can't always make major adjustments," said Carol Birdsong, a Williamson County Schools spokeswoman.

"... But since we didn't grow like we projected that we would from people moving in, really, we were just able to absorb the private school kids."

Wilson County reported 85 students coming in from private and home schools, a figure tracked through assessments given incoming students. Representatives from Sumner County, Rutherford County and Metro Nashville schools said they don't track where new students come from.

Still, there are some indicators of movement. Steve Chauncy, principal at Hillwood High School in Nashville, said the school had gained 20 new students from private schools.

It's tough to get a clear picture of movement between public and private schools because private schools typically closely guard information about their enrollment, finances and plans, to protect their image, said Dale Ballou, an economist and associate professor of public policy and education at Vanderbilt University.

But the effects of past economic downturns were noticeable particularly in Catholic schools, he said.

"This time ... there may be an impact in some of the newer Christian schools that's more or less for the same reason: A lot of the people there don't have a lot of money, and the schools are run on pretty tight budgets," he said.

Some parents sacrifice

In Nashville, the economy appears to have had an impact at established schools. Donelson Christian Academy, which serves students from kindergarten through 12th grade, enrolled 821 students last year and 754 this year.

Headmaster Danny Kellum said he always asks why a child is leaving the school because Donelson Christian wants to partner with parents raising children. The school was founded in 1971.

"We've had numerous parents tell us that they've either lost jobs or the economy has affected their income and therefore they no longer have the discretionary funds for tuition," Kellum said.

Friendship Christian School, a K-12 school in Lebanon founded in 1973, saw enrollment shrink from about 700 students last year to 628 this year. The reason most parents of departing students cited was financial strain, said Jon Shoulders, president and headmaster.

He said other parents are doing "any and everything they can do to keep their children in the school."

As with most private schools, the bulk of Friendship's budget comes from student tuition and gifts, so it was forced to offer less financial aid and not to renew a few teachers' contracts, Shoulders said. But the number of parent volunteers has grown.

For several years, Trisha Stanley has volunteered "too many hours to count" at her sons' K-12 private school in Franklin, Battle Ground Academy.

And while the combination of a stable but static family income and an increase in tuition means that the family must cut back on some luxuries, Stanley said she hopes to keep her children enrolled at the school until they graduate.

"You cannot beat the small class sizes, the student-teacher ratio, the individual attention - and not just with the children but with the families," Stanley said.

Stanley, a former public school teacher, said concerns about the amount of time that must be devoted to disciplining a few children in public schools sparked her initial interest in a private-school education for her sons.

Catholic schools are seeing mixed economic impact, but enrollment across the Diocese of Nashville is stable, spokesman Rick Musacchio said.

At Overbrook School, a pre-K-through-eighth-grade Catholic school that is not owned by the diocese, enrollment fell from 350 to 330.

Many of the students who left the school moved out of the area because a parent was transferred or promoted, said Barbara Esteves-Moore, a spokeswoman for Overbook.

Esteves-Moore also represents St. Cecilia Academy, an all-girls Catholic high school, where enrollment grew from 242 to 266.

This year, Catholic schools and other private academies are providing thousands more in financial aid - $200,000 more at St. Cecilia alone.

More assistance sought

At Harpeth Hall, an all-girls school serving grades 5-12, enrollment grew slightly, but parents who never asked for tuition help before did so this year, said Ann Teaff, head of the school.

"Based upon the things that families have shared with me, the decision to have their daughter attend Harpeth Hall is, in many cases, not one that comes without sacrifice," she said.

"Families are readjusting their budgets."

University School of Nashville added three students this year but gave about $700,000 more in financial aid, said Juliette Douglas, director of admissions and financial aid. Tuition for its high school students is $17,142 annually.

The coed K-12 school had to make difficult decisions to ensure that students would be able to remain there. Even some students' siblings who wanted to come to the school were denied aid, Douglas said.

At all-boys Montgomery Bell Academy, navigating the recession-addled economy meant paying down debt; cutting back on paper use, heating and cooling costs; combining and eliminating some staff positions; and making a 15 percent increase in financial aid available, said Brad Gioia, the school's headmaster.

Between this and last school year, the number of students receiving aid at the school grew from 17 percent of 700 students to 19 percent of 710 students.