DickersonBakker Christian schools are entering a new era.
Before the pandemic, enrollment in Christian schools across the United States was largely flat, even slowly declining. But when COVID-19 forced public schools to close and classes to move online, the difficult realities of public education came home. Large class sizes, inadequate staffing, disorganized virtual education, curriculum limitations, and rapidly changing social and moral standards – it all caused parents to take a new look at Christian schools.
The result? Interest in Christian schools is suddenly surging in every region of the country. In fact, according to a recent survey by EdChoice, 41% of parents indicated that they would now prefer a private education for their children. For Christian schools, this represents an opportunity for unprecedented growth.
But this great opportunity also presents some sobering challenges, particularly related to financial sustainability.
Every year, DickersonBakker conducts a Nonprofit Leaders Insight Study, to gain valuable insights into the attitudes and perceptions of nonprofit leaders. Our goal is to stay informed of current trends and challenges in the nonprofit space, especially as it pertains to fundraising.
Given the timely opportunity at hand, we focused this year’s study on the opportunities and challenges Christian schools are facing in today’s dynamic environment. Decades of collective experience in this sector informed our inquiry and a robust survey response provided insights into the situation that school leaders are encountering. A primary focus of the study was Christian school leaders’ perceptions and attitudes about fundraising.
