I was on the board of a small, independent, private school with low(ish) tuition (~$7000). We made it work, kind of as Dude says - lots of fundraising, lots of parental volunteering, lots of hard decisions when budgeting, and hiring young teachers. No hidden costs from us, but I'm sure other places may have those.

Aside from the lower salary benefits of an inexperienced teacher, you also get someone more willing to buy into your school's philosophy of teaching.

--S.F.


For gifted children, doing nothing is the wrong choice.