35th Annual Risley-Proctor Round Table

Brewster, Massachusetts--The 35th Annual Meeting of the Risley-Proctor Round Table, a gathering of international boarding and day school admissions officers, enrollment managers, heads of school, and colleagues from related fields, concluded Tuesday, in Brewster, Massachusetts. The meeting addressed pressing challenges and opportunities facing educational institutions, raised money for a charity, and celebrated the retirement of a long-standing educator.

The group focused much of their discussion on brainstorming solutions to combat the extraordinary pressure driving tuition upward in schools, potentially pricing out more families and continuing to threaten less stable schools with having to shut their doors. Coming out of Covid especially, schools are increasing their tuitions to accommodate the growing needs for student support and mental health services. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, 2,874 private schools have closed between 2010-2020 because of various factors; tuition levels and lower enrollment were the drivers. As a result, private school administrators are having to think more innovatively about how to maintain healthy enrollment.

Traditional private school families look very different from what they did in the 1980s. No longer in the era of The Preppy Handbook, private school student bodies now reflect the diversity of our country. Financial aid, scholarships, and transportation make day and boarding schools accessible options for all families.

International students represent a growing percentage of the student body. “Full-pay” students and families from Korea, China, South America and other international locations are becoming increasingly valuable to American boarding schools, with total fees per student ranging from $80,000 to $100,000 per year. It is not unusual today for selective American boarding schools to have as much as 20% of their population from overseas.

To remain secure, the Round Table collaborative also acknowledged the need for private schools of all sizes to build permanent endowment funds and develop auxiliary revenue streams to help alleviate the pressure on tuition fees.. The gathering included professional development sessions from the Enrollment Management Association on using science-based data that includes demographic trends to adapt to the changing needs and expectations of families.

In the face of public and charter schools the group noted the extreme pressure to bridge the gap between what families can afford and what schools need to charge per student. How do private schools compete with educational institutions not burdened by the need to attract tuition-paying families?

In honor of longtime Round Table organizer Mr. Brian Proctor, funds were generously donated by the attendees to be contributed to an Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis organization for research working to eradicate the disease that took Mr. Proctor‘s life and so many others too young.

The meeting also featured live music and a retirement celebration for Mr. Robinson Moore, who is retiring after 41 years serving Lawrence Academy, Groton, Massachusetts, where he is the associate head of school. Mr. Moore was praised for his dedication and mentorship to many in the education community. Mr. William Mullouch, Director of Enrollment Management for New Hampton Shool, and Mr. Charles Cahn, Head of Suffield Academy, who has served that institution himself for 32 years, rose with glass in hand to celebrate the longevity of Mr. Moore as an example of the devotion and loyalty United States boarding and day schools enjoy and require.

The next solemn conclave of the Proctor Round Table occurs over Mother’s Day weekend in 2025 at Ocean's Edge, in Brewster, Massachusetts. Applications are received by Mr. Chip Audett, Round Table Executive Director, at Cardigan Mountain School, in Canaan, New Hampshire.