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Leading a charter school through major transitions—whether facility expansions, enrollment challenges, or budget constraints—requires both courage and clarity. In our recent panel discussion, Navigating Transition: Charter School Leadership in Times of Change, four experienced school leaders shared honest, practical insights about making strategic decisions during uncertain times.

Know When It’s Time to Make a Move

Every school leader faces that pivotal moment when they realize maintaining the status quo is no longer an option. For our panelists, those moments looked very different:

Jonathon Marowelli from Jackson Preparatory and Early College in Michigan noticed a troubling pattern: “We had this slow decline in enrollment. You can blame COVID for a couple years, and then at a certain point, you have to get realistic with yourself and say, what’s going on here?” His solution was a significant investment in marketing, which resulted in 15% enrollment growth.

Dr. Curtis Palmore of United Charter High Schools in New York City faced a different challenge. Post-COVID enrollment dips meant his schools were overstaffed, requiring what he called “rightsizing”—a difficult but necessary reduction in force to ensure long-term sustainability.

For Dr. Tandria Callins of Language and Literacy Academy for Learning in Florida, the catalyst was completely external. After six years of renting and preparing to purchase their building, the previous owners exercised their right of refusal, forcing the school to relocate 330 students and 100 staff members with just months to plan.

Christin Barkas of Kiddinu Academy in San Diego faced the opposite problem: demand exceeding capacity, with over 400 kids on their waitlist and more siblings than could fit into existing classrooms.

Charter School Leadership In Times Of Change (1)

Protect Your Mission Above All Else

When facing difficult financial decisions, every panelist emphasized the same principle: protect your core mission first.

Jonathon put it clearly: “When you’re facing budget constraints, what helped is still having the image of who we are as our grounding. Being a whole school early college dual enrollment was never even an option to not do that. That’s our commitment to our kids.”

Dr. Palmore recommended looking beyond the obvious cuts: “Doing a deep dive into what we call the OTPS or other than personnel spending. We found small pockets of money where we’re just like, we don’t even use this system anymore. Why are we paying for this?”

Dr. Callins faced the painful decision of laying off nine staff members when enrollment dropped due to their campus split. More recently, she converted some salaried positions to hourly and cut administrative positions to weather potential federal funding cuts. But she never compromised on the specialized services that define her school’s mission.

The Power of Community Communication

Keeping stakeholders aligned during transitions requires intentional communication strategies. The panelists shared several approaches:

Board Alignment: Jonathan emphasized the importance of annual board training, especially as membership turns over. Kristen created a facilities committee that met regularly before board meetings, ensuring key members were informed and aligned before major decisions.

Dr. Palmore established working groups that meet before board meetings: “I go into the board meetings with several individuals who already know the ins and outs that can essentially back me up when we’re unpacking the things that we’re doing.”

Parent Engagement: Christin’s strategy of creating a district parent leadership team proved invaluable. “Having that trusted group that have their ear to the community, we were really looking for parents who had a broader impact and a lot of connections” helped her stay ahead of community concerns.

Dr. Callins emphasized transparency and involvement: “In order for anyone to support an organization, they have to know what the mission and vision is. We repeated it—the students know the mission and vision.”

Recruitment Strategies That Actually Work

With enrollment challenges affecting schools nationwide, our panelists shared their most effective recruitment approaches:

The clear winner across all schools? Word-of-mouth referrals. But that doesn’t mean digital marketing isn’t important.

Dr. Callans runs a comprehensive marketing operation including YouTube, Google, and Facebook ads, plus billboard advertisements—resulting in a waitlist of 350 students. She monitors data quarterly, adjusting keywords and targeting based on performance.

Jonathan noted an interesting dynamic: “Very few people say social media. But when we started doing the ad spend on social media, that’s when we started getting more applications. I think it was a combination of the two—’I remember my friend said their kid goes there and they had a great experience, and I saw an advertisement for it that reminded me to look into it.'”

Dr. Palmore added two strategies that delivered strong ROI: canvassing in specific neighborhoods and intentional direct mail with QR codes using a company called Vanguard, which became their third biggest source of return on investment.

Christin emphasized the importance of activating parent advocates, even having parents volunteer to distribute flyers at high-traffic businesses and speak to other families in their home language—Arabic, Chaldean, and Spanish.

Know When to Act (And When to Wait)

Timing major transitions requires balancing urgency with readiness. The panelists offered several indicators:

Kristen’s perspective: “For us, it was the demand—the community demand meant it’s time to make some changes. The other component was just facility availability. In a competitive market, you’ve got to strike while the iron’s hot.”

Dr. Palmore’s warning signal: Projections showing that continuing business as usual would deplete their healthy surplus within six to seven years. That prompted immediate action on recruitment and rightsizing.

Dr. Callins’ reflection: “You’ll know when the timing is right. You may not know it while you’re doing it because sometimes you second guess yourself. But as I reflect, last year when we were split in two campuses was in my mind one of our most challenging years. However, we received our highest improvement rating and our first $400,000 surplus.”

Jonathon added a forward-looking perspective: “When you start to see the momentum of a growing enrollment or a need in the community that’s on the rise or isn’t being filled, when do you want to make changes? You want to make changes three years ago. You want to be ready.”

Final Wisdom for Leaders in Transition

Each panelist offered one piece of advice for school leaders navigating major transitions:

Christin: “Surround yourself with key individuals who you feel you can be transparent with and activate your leadership team—parents, board members, and teacher leaders who have their eyes and ears on what’s happening.”

Jonathon: “Keep coming back to those grounding questions. Have people around you who are on board with the same mission and vision. Things that seem like they’re taking the longest often feel like they were short periods of your life in hindsight.”

Dr. Callins: “Stay true to the mission and vision. Surround yourself with a strong network of supportive people. You’re a leader for a reason. You’ve made it this far—believe in yourself and be confident. A denial is just a delay. Don’t give up.”

Dr. Palmore: “Take care of yourself. Whatever things you do to ensure that you have stability—continue to do that throughout this ordeal. Compartmentalize so you can still keep that vision around the work you have to do every single day. And delegate, delegate, delegate.”

Watch the full recorded live event here.

I work with charter schools every day on growth strategies, and I’ve seen firsthand how challenging the enrollment landscape has become. With over 8,000 charter schools now competing for students—and even states like North Dakota just opening their doors to charter legislation—there’s more noise than ever to cut through.

During our recent workshop on school marketing trends, we asked attendees which platforms they’re using most. The responses flooded in: Facebook, Instagram, website, email. And then someone asked the question I hear constantly: “Should we be on TikTok?”

Here’s my honest answer.

Social Media Doesn’t Drive Qualified Leads (By Itself)

Let me be clear: Facebook, Instagram, TikTok—none of these platforms alone is going to drive qualified enrollment leads. They’re awareness tools, not lead generators.

Your website converts. Your application process converts. Social media helps you get noticed.

I’ve talked to schools who used to get leads via Facebook and wonder why it’s not working anymore. Others ask if Instagram is the answer, or if they should jump on TikTok because everyone’s talking about it.

The truth? If you’re investing heavily in broad platforms where you’re reaching massive audiences that may or may not be interested in your school, that’s probably not the best use of your limited time when you’re looking for qualified enrollment leads.

Social Media For Charter Schools What Actually Drives Enrollment

So Where Should You Actually Focus?

Facebook and Instagram are your foundation. Despite all the buzz about newer platforms, Facebook still has the biggest reach and broadest user base. More importantly—and I can’t stress this enough—it’s where parents are.

Here’s a practical tip: you can cross-post from Facebook to Instagram, giving you two platforms for one effort. Even if you don’t have an Instagram account, you can run Facebook ads that appear on Instagram.

TikTok is worth exploring if you have capacity. It can be great for showing your school’s personality. But—and this is important—don’t let it distract you from marketing fundamentals. Go where your families actually are, not where headlines tell you to be.

The Paid vs. Organic Question

Paid ads help you reach families who don’t know you exist yet. They help with discovery. But most people aren’t going to see a paid ad and immediately enroll their child. That’s just not how families make school decisions.

Think about what happens after someone clicks your ad. If they land on a Facebook page that’s running lots of ads but has no recent posts, what does that look like? An inactive school, maybe one that’s struggling.

But if they click through and see photos from last week’s field trip, an announcement about when enrollment opens, highlights of alumni success, teacher spotlights—that builds credibility. That’s what organic content does.

You really need both. The ratio of paid to organic might depend on your budget and the time of year. During big enrollment pushes ahead of lottery season, you might lean heavier on paid. During quieter times, organic content maintains your presence and keeps building trust.

Social Media For Charter Schools What Actually Drives Enrollment (2)

What You Post Matters More Than Where You Post It

The most powerful content shows your school in action.

Real content looks like:

  1. Student testimonials, especially video (they don’t need to be polished—authentic is better)
  2. Day-in-the-life content following a teacher or student
  3. Virtual tours shot on your phone walking through your spaces
  4. Current parent voices talking about why they chose your school

During our workshop, we heard from Jonathan Marowelli at Jackson Prep who said something that really stuck with me: “Don’t tell your story. Show it.” His school celebrates student success consistently—student of the month, sports highlights, teacher celebrations, graduate stories. When prospective families start looking, they can see what it’s really like.

My Bottom Line Advice

Show up consistently where your families actually are, tell authentic stories about what makes your school special, and make it easy for interested families to take the next step.

The schools I see with solid enrollment aren’t necessarily the ones with the biggest marketing budgets. They’re the ones who know exactly who they are, own it completely, and tell that story consistently across the channels that actually matter.

About the Author

Ashley Macquarrie

Ashley MacQuarrie is VP of Marketing at Grow Schools, where she leads the enrollment marketing team helping charter schools achieve sustainable growth.

For charter schools, facilities represent a challenge that district schools never face. Unlike traditional public schools that receive buildings as part of their infrastructure, charter schools must locate, secure, and often transform spaces into learning environments—all while managing limited resources and growing student populations.

Having worked with numerous charter schools navigating these challenges, I’ve observed patterns in both struggles and successes. The schools that thrive understand a fundamental truth: enrollment, funding, and facilities don’t exist in isolation. They form an interconnected system where each element depends on and supports the others.

The Virtuous Cycle How Enrollment Funding And Facilities Interconnect

The Unique Facility Challenges Charter Schools Face

The Starting Line Disadvantage

Charter schools begin at a disadvantage simply by not being given facilities. While district schools inherit buildings with all the infrastructure advantages that come with them, charter schools must locate suitable spaces in competitive real estate markets, often competing against commercial tenants who can offer landlords simpler, more profitable arrangements.

This initial challenge sets the tone for ongoing facility struggles that impact every aspect of school operations.

Overcapacity and Unmet Demand

One of the most common scenarios I encounter is schools operating at or beyond capacity with significant waitlists. These schools have proven their educational model and created community demand, yet they’re physically unable to serve additional students.

This situation represents both success and frustration—success in creating a program families want, frustration in being unable to fulfill your mission due to physical constraints. The challenge becomes finding pathways to expand capacity without overextending financial resources or compromising educational quality.

Non-Optimal Learning Spaces

Many charter schools occupy buildings never designed for education. Converted big-box stores, former movie theaters, office buildings, and retail spaces all present unique challenges for creating effective learning environments.

These spaces might lack adequate natural lighting, appropriate acoustics, or efficient layouts for educational programming. Classrooms might be oddly shaped, circulation patterns inefficient, and specialized spaces like science labs or performance areas simply impossible to accommodate without significant investment.

While these spaces can absolutely house successful schools, they require creativity, adaptation, and often compromise on the ideal learning environment you’d create if building from scratch.

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The Maintenance and Upkeep Dilemma

Perhaps the most persistent facility challenge involves ongoing maintenance and improvements. With limited budgets, charter schools constantly balance facility upkeep against educational programming investments.

Should you repair aging HVAC systems or invest in new curriculum materials? Do you address deferred roof maintenance or hire another teacher? These aren’t hypothetical scenarios—they’re real decisions charter school leaders face regularly.

The challenge intensifies because deferred maintenance typically becomes more expensive over time, creating a cycle where small issues become major capital expenditures that could have been prevented with earlier intervention.

The Virtuous Cycle

Understanding the relationship between enrollment, funding, and facilities is crucial for sustainable charter school growth. These three elements create what I call a “virtuous cycle” when properly aligned.

The Chicken and Egg Problem

Which comes first: enrollment, funding, or facility? The answer is all three, simultaneously. Without a facility, you cannot enroll students. Without enrolled students, you don’t generate funding. Without funding, you cannot secure or maintain facilities.

This interdependence means that weakness in any one area compromises the others. Conversely, strength in one area creates opportunities to strengthen the others.

The Positive Feedback Loop

When these elements align strategically, they create positive momentum:

  1. A quality facility attracts families and supports enrollment growth
  2. Strong enrollment generates funding for facility improvements
  3. Better facilities enable program enhancements that attract more families
  4. Increased enrollment provides resources for additional facility investments

This cycle continues, with each improvement enabling the next. The schools experiencing the most sustainable growth have figured out how to keep all three elements moving forward together rather than sacrificing one for another.

The Virtuous Cycle How Enrollment Funding And Facilities Interconnect (2)

The Importance of Expert Guidance

Navigating this complex relationship often requires outside expertise. Organizations like Grow Schools, state charter associations, or financial advisors can provide the comprehensive perspective needed to align these elements strategically.

These partners help you see the complete landscape rather than focusing myopically on individual problems. They can identify how facility decisions impact enrollment potential, how enrollment patterns should inform facility planning, and how both connect to sustainable funding models.

Just as you’d consult a financial advisor for complex personal finance decisions, charter schools benefit from expertise that considers all interconnected elements of school operations.

Moving Forward Strategically

Sustainable charter school growth requires viewing enrollment, funding, and facilities as interconnected elements of a single system rather than separate challenges to address individually.

The Strategic Approach

  1. Regularly assess all three elements together, not in isolation
  2. Partner with experts who understand how these elements interconnect
  3. Make facility decisions based on enrollment data and financial capacity
  4. Ensure facility investments support rather than strain educational programming
  5. Build flexibility into facility arrangements to accommodate inevitable changes

The schools experiencing the most sustainable growth treat facility decisions as strategic tools that support their educational mission rather than ends in themselves. When enrollment, funding, and facilities align strategically, charter schools create the virtuous cycle that enables long-term success. Each improvement strengthens the others, building momentum that supports sustainable growth while maintaining the educational quality that attracted families in the first place.

The enrollment landscape has fundamentally shifted. With over 8,000 charter schools now operating across the country and even new states like North Dakota opening their doors to charter legislation, competition for students has never been fiercer. Add declining birth rates and families making decisions online before ever picking up the phone, and it’s clear: traditional marketing approaches aren’t cutting it anymore.

The live event,” What’s Trending in School Marketing: Proven Strategies and Enrollment Tactics That Fill Classrooms,” features insights from our enrollment marketing experts and successful school leaders who are seeing real results.

The Truth About Social Media (It Might Surprise You)

Ashley MacQuarrie, VP of Marketing at Grow Schools, opened with what she called a “controversial” truth: no social media platform alone drives qualified leads in 2025.

“Facebook used to be the answer. Instagram was the hot new thing. Everyone’s asking about TikTok,” Ashley explained. “The truth is that those are awareness tools. They’re not lead generators, at least not on their own. Your website converts, your application process converts. Social media can help you get noticed.”

Where Should You Invest?

Facebook and Instagram remain the foundation for school marketing, particularly because that’s where parents—especially moms who are often primary decision-makers—spend their time. Paid advertising on these platforms actually works when used strategically for discovery, while organic content builds the trust and credibility families need before taking the next step.

TikTok is worth exploring if you have capacity, but shouldn’t distract from marketing fundamentals. As Ashley noted: “Go where your families actually are, not where headlines might be telling you you should be.”

Content That Actually Converts

The most powerful content shows your school in action—not stock photos or generic messages. Jesse Foss, Content Strategist on Grow Schools’ Enrollment Marketing team, emphasized that schools should focus on:

  • Student testimonials (especially video): Short, authentic clips of real kids talking about what they love
  • Day-in-the-life content: Follow a teacher or student through their day
  • Virtual tours: Simple phone walk-throughs of your spaces (no drone shots needed)
  • Parent voices: Current parents are your best marketing tool

“The goal isn’t to go viral, but to show up as a consistent, trusted and reliable organization for families,” Jesse explained. “Show, don’t tell.”

The AI Question Everyone’s Asking

Yes, you can use AI to help write social posts, emails, and blog content—but with a critical caveat.

“AI can create noise. It sounds very generic, and your school is not generic,” Ashley warned. “If your content could be about any school, it’s not really doing its job. Use AI to overcome blank page syndrome, then edit it heavily. Add specific examples, real stories. AI is a tool. You’re still the storyteller.”

Whats Trending In School Marketing (1)

Don’t Panic About AI Search

While headlines warn about AI reducing website traffic, Ashley offered reassurance: “You’re a school. Families will still need to call, visit, and apply. They’re not going to enroll their kid based on an AI answer. Your website isn’t going away. SEO fundamentals still really matter.”

Email Automation: The Easy Win

One of the simplest yet highest-impact tactics? Automated inquiry confirmations.

“If someone fills out your inquiry form, do they get an immediate confirmation?” Ashley asked. “Families want to know their inquiry didn’t just disappear into the void. The automated response buys you 24 hours to follow up personally. Low effort, high impact.”

Email continues to have some of the highest ROI of any marketing channel because families are actively opting in to hear from you.

Measuring What Actually Matters

Jesse emphasized moving beyond vanity metrics: “Followers don’t equal enrollments. Likes don’t equal applications. Shares don’t equal inquiries.”

Instead, track:

  • Website visits
  • Form fills
  • Tour sign-ups
  • Where families are dropping off in your enrollment funnel

“If families aren’t converting from inquiry to tour, your follow-up process needs work,” Jesse explained. “If they’re touring but not applying, something in that experience isn’t clicking. Marketing can generate more top-of-funnel activity, but if your funnel leaks, more volume won’t solve it.”

Strategic Content Planning Around Enrollment Cycles

Your content should align with when families are making decisions:

  • October-December: Build awareness, showcase your school
  • January-March: Active recruitment mode—open house promotion, application info, urgency
  • April-June: Application push plus retention focus for current families
  • July-September: Welcome new families, prevent summer attrition

“If a family enrolls in February, they have six months before school starts—a really long time to consider if they made the right choice,” Jesse noted. “Use your social media to keep them warm and remind them all summer long why choosing you was a great decision.”

Real Schools, Real Results

The workshop featured two school leaders putting these strategies into practice:

Mike Taack, Founder and CEO of WYLEES (Western Youth Leadership, Engagement, and Empowerment Middle School) in Las Vegas, faced the challenge every brand-new school does: zero awareness in a crowded, competitive market.

“Las Vegas is full of bright lights and distractions, and it’s easy to get overlooked, especially if you’re doing something as mundane as education,” Mike shared. “I knew that Grow Schools had a really high-quality systematic approach to enrollment marketing, and I knew that we needed that to break through the noise.”

Mike’s advice? Start with budgeting for marketing from day one. He wrote enrollment marketing partnership costs into both his state authorization application and federal CSP grant application because he knew it would be critical.

“The hardest part was the timeline of getting enrollments,” Mike admitted. “There’s a critical phase to build awareness and it takes time. It felt tense. But all that front-end investment in sharing our story really paid dividends because we saw a cumulative snowball effect. The awareness was building and building.”

Jonathan Maraweli, President of Jackson Preparatory & Early College in Michigan, faced a different challenge: misconceptions about what his school actually offered.

“I’ve heard everything from ‘I thought it was only a school for smart kids’ to ‘I thought it was an alternative school,'” Jonathan explained. “It was really about setting a foundation of what we are, who we serve, and doing it so that word-of-mouth can really be that biggest lever.”

Jonathan’s school is ten years old and had been experiencing slow but steady enrollment decline despite strong test scores and parent satisfaction. After partnering with Grow Schools on enrollment marketing, they reversed that trend.

“Experience matters, and that’s what families will cite. But it’s interesting because when you put the marketing with it, then they come,” Jonathan observed. “They might not say it was a Google ad that brought them to our school, but maybe that Google ad was the lever that pushed them in the right direction.”

Both Mike and Jonathan emphasized that working with an enrollment marketing partner is exactly that—a partnership.

“It really is a partnership, and it goes both ways,” Jonathan stressed. “You’re not just handing it off. We are Grow Schools’ best tool where we are at. They can give us the ideas and handle a lot of the digital, but we’re the ones doing it on the ground.”

Mike echoed this: “What was really helpful for us was we had a partner to think through how to optimize our ground game, how to take the things we’re already doing and really make them more high-leverage. It really was like having two or three or four extra staff members who are experts in this type of work.”

The Bottom Line

Effective school marketing in 2025 isn’t about going viral or being on every platform. It’s about consistent, authentic storytelling that shows families what makes your school special—and meeting them where they already are online.

As Ashley summarized: “Your school is not generic. If your content could be about any school, it’s not doing its job.”

In this episode of Tuesday Tips, we were joined by design expert Niki Blaker to discuss visual communication strategies for school leaders creating materials without formal design training.

Here are this session’s top 3 tips:

  1. Choose colors strategically for brand and accessibility. Navy and burgundy convey trust and tradition for established institutions, while bright blues and greens signal innovation for STEM or progressive schools. Build a palette of 5-6 colors (two primary, two accent, plus dark and light neutrals) and maintain a 4.5:1 contrast ratio for readability. Use tools like coolors.co to generate palettes and check accessibility.
  2. Apply the CRAP principle for effective layouts (it’s a terrible name, but it’s memorable!) Contrast makes important information pop, Repetition keeps materials cohesive, Alignment ensures intentional placement, and Proximity groups related information together. Use the “5-second test”—if someone can’t understand your main message in 5 seconds, simplify. Remember: when everything competes for attention, nothing gets it.
  3. Master typography with two main fonts and clear hierarchy. Choose one font for headings, one for body text, ensuring they’re sufficiently different in weight and visual density. Create hierarchy with size and weight, not just color. Use tools like fontjoy.com or fontpair.co for pairing suggestions. Avoid fonts that undermine credibility like Comic Sans.

Watch the Whole Conversation Here

Lease agreements represent one of the ongoing expenses for schools, often consuming 10-20% of annual revenue. Yet many school leaders approach lease negotiations without commercial real estate experience, focusing primarily on rent amount while overlooking terms that could save thousands of dollars annually and provide crucial operational flexibility.

Having worked with numerous schools on lease negotiations, I’ve seen how strategic lease structuring can make the difference between agreements that support educational missions and those that constrain growth and drain resources. The key is understanding that effective lease negotiation extends far beyond securing the lowest possible rent.

1. The Foundation: Aligning Lease Terms with School Mission and Goals

The most successful school lease negotiations start with a clear understanding of how the space will serve your educational mission. This means looking beyond location preferences to consider how the physical environment will support your specific instructional approach.

Mission-Driven Space Requirements

Different educational approaches require different spatial configurations. An art-focused school needs open studio spaces with proper ventilation and natural light, while a sports-oriented program requires fields, equipment storage, and locker room facilities. A STEM school might prioritize laboratory spaces and maker areas, while a Montessori program needs flexible classroom configurations.

These mission-specific requirements should drive your lease negotiations, not be afterthoughts once you’ve secured a space. I’ve seen schools choose facilities based primarily on rent or location, only to discover later that the space fundamentally doesn’t support their educational approach.

The Full Financial Picture

Many schools make the mistake of negotiating only on base rent while overlooking the total cost of occupancy. Your lease negotiation should address:

  1. Property expense responsibilities and how they’re calculated
  2. Utility arrangements and cost allocation methods
  3. Security requirements and associated costs
  4. Repair and maintenance responsibilities
  5. Insurance requirements and premium responsibilities
  6. Tax implications and assessment responsibilities
3 Lease Negotiation Strategies For Schools

Understanding these additional costs upfront prevents budget surprises and allows for more accurate financial planning.

Conservative Enrollment Planning

It’s tempting to negotiate lease terms based on optimistic enrollment projections, but this approach often leads to financial stress. Base your lease obligations on conservative enrollment forecasts that account for potential variations in student numbers.

Build your lease structure to accommodate growth when it happens, but ensure you can meet obligations even if enrollment doesn’t reach projected levels. This approach provides financial stability while positioning you to capitalize on growth opportunities.

2. Building Flexibility for Future Growth

One of the most costly mistakes schools make is negotiating inflexible lease terms that require complete renegotiation when circumstances change. Building flexibility into your initial agreement saves money and provides strategic advantages as your school evolves.

Phased Expansion Planning

The most effective approach to accommodating growth is planning expansion in phases from the beginning. This involves including specific language in your lease that accounts for your desire to grow and expand over time.

Consider negotiating rights of first refusal for additional space within the same building. Many schools can start by occupying a portion of a larger building—perhaps 25% initially—with clear pathways to expand as enrollment grows. This approach provides immediate cost savings while securing future growth options.

Expansion Mechanisms Several lease provisions can facilitate future expansion:

  1. Right of First Refusal: Gives you the first opportunity to lease additional space in the same building when it becomes available
  2. Predetermined Expansion Schedule: Establishes timeline and terms for taking additional space based on enrollment milestones
  3. Modular Addition Rights: Allows for temporary or permanent modular classroom additions on available land
  4. Space Reconfiguration Rights: Permits internal modifications to optimize space utilization

Exit and Assignment Options Flexibility also means having options when circumstances change unexpectedly. Negotiate early termination rights for specific scenarios, such as charter authorization issues or significant program changes. Include assignment and subletting rights that allow you to share space with complementary programs or transfer obligations if necessary.

These flexibility provisions are typically easier and less expensive to negotiate during initial lease discussions rather than trying to modify existing agreements later.

3. Strategic Tenant Improvement Negotiations

3 Lease Negotiation Strategies For Schools (2)

Tenant improvements (TIs) represent opportunities to customize space for your educational mission while managing capital expenditures strategically. Effective TI negotiation requires understanding both your educational needs and financial capacity.

Phased Improvement Planning

Rather than trying to complete all improvements at once, consider phasing improvements to match your growth trajectory and cash flow. For example, you might negotiate immediate classroom improvements with future gymnasium or laboratory additions tied to enrollment milestones.

This approach allows you to optimize your budget while ensuring improvements align with actual growth rather than projected growth.

Landlord Financing Options

Many landlords are willing to finance tenant improvements through slightly increased rent payments rather than requiring upfront capital. This arrangement can unlock improvements that might otherwise strain your cash flow, while spreading costs over the lease term at predetermined interest rates.

When negotiating these arrangements, establish clear milestones tied to certificates of occupancy or other objective completion standards. This ensures you don’t pay for improvements until they’re actually usable.

Creative Improvement Solutions

Some of the most effective tenant improvement negotiations involve creative solutions that serve both landlord and tenant interests. This might include:

  1. Improvements that enhance overall building value
  2. Modifications that could benefit future tenants
  3. Energy efficiency upgrades that reduce operating costs
  4. Technology infrastructure that serves building-wide needs

These improvements often receive more favorable landlord contributions because they provide benefits beyond your specific tenancy.

Moving Forward Strategically

Effective lease negotiation for schools requires balancing immediate needs with long-term vision, financial constraints with educational requirements, and operational flexibility with commitment certainty. The schools that achieve the best lease outcomes understand that successful negotiation extends far beyond rent reduction.

The key is approaching lease negotiations as strategic tools that support your educational mission rather than simply expense management exercises. When lease terms align with educational goals, provide operational flexibility, and maintain financial sustainability, they create foundations for long-term school success.

About the Author

a headshot of Tabatha Zilio Martins

Tabatha was born and raised in Brazil, where she graduated in Hospitality Management. At Grow Schools, she helps schools get where they’re going by helping them get into their forever homes.

Facility decisions represent some of the largest investments schools will ever make, yet many educational leaders approach these choices based on emotion, immediate pressure, or gut instinct rather than enrollment data. This approach leads to expensive mistakes—schools that overextend financially, outgrow their solutions too quickly, or commit to spaces that don’t align with their actual growth patterns.

The solution requires discipline: let enrollment data drive facility decisions. By understanding your enrollment patterns, projections, and key metrics, schools can make facility choices that support sustainable growth while protecting their financial stability.

Understanding Your Enrollment Reality

Before making facility decisions—whether lease renewal, expansion, or property purchase—schools need a clear picture of their enrollment reality beyond current student count.

Historical Pattern Analysis

Analyze at least 5-10 years of enrollment data if available. Look for patterns in growth, stability, and attrition. Pay attention to grade-level trends. Do you consistently see drops from 6th to 7th grade? Are kindergarten classes growing while middle school grades remain stable? These patterns reveal crucial information about facility needs.

Some schools discover natural enrollment breaks at certain grade levels, often due to program transitions or when families choose different educational paths. Understanding these patterns helps predict future space needs more accurately than assuming linear growth across all grades.

Community Context

Research demographic changes and housing developments in your area. Is your community growing or declining? Are birth rates increasing or decreasing? New housing developments, major employers relocating to your area, or significant economic changes all impact enrollment projections.

We’ve worked with schools where new processing plants brought job growth to the area, creating enrollment opportunities that weren’t immediately obvious from historical data. Conversely, some schools face challenges when major employers leave their regions, affecting family stability and enrollment retention.

How Enrollment Data Can Inform Facility Decisions 3 Metrics To Track

Waitlist Reality Check

Many schools point to waitlists as evidence of facility demand, but waitlist depth alone doesn’t tell the complete story. The critical metric is waitlist conversion rate. We’ve seen schools with impressive waitlists discover that when spots actually open, families often don’t convert to enrollment.

Track not just waitlist size, but actual conversion rates when spots become available. A smaller, highly-converting waitlist often indicates stronger demand than a large list with poor conversion.

Key Enrollment Metrics for Facility Decisions

1. Average Daily Attendance (ADA) Targets

    The most important metric for facility planning is achieving about 80% of your target ADA consistently. If you’re targeting 500 ADA, having 400 or more students in seats daily puts you in strong financial position for facility investments.

    ADA differs from enrollment because it accounts for actual attendance patterns. Some schools enroll 500 students but average only 450 in daily attendance due to chronic absenteeism or other factors. For facility planning, ADA provides a more realistic picture of your operational capacity needs.

    2. Multi-Year Consistency

    Single-year enrollment success doesn’t provide sufficient foundation for major facility decisions. Look for 3-5 years of meeting enrollment targets consistently. Occasional blips aren’t disqualifying, but you want evidence of sustained enrollment health before committing to significant facility investments.

    3. Grade-Level Distribution

    Understanding enrollment distribution across grades helps predict facility needs. Elementary-heavy schools need different space configurations than middle school-focused institutions. Some schools discover their enrollment is heavily weighted toward certain grade bands, affecting everything from bathroom ratios to classroom sizes.

    Strategic Timing for Facility Investments

    The Two-Year Rule

    Start facility planning at least two years before you need the space. This timeline accounts for the reality that everything takes longer than expected—finding suitable space, securing financing, navigating permitting processes, and completing improvements.

    This extended timeline also allows for facility improvements while you’re still in your current location, enabling transitions during natural break periods like summer rather than disrupting the school year.

    Enrollment Stability Requirements

    Facility investments should only be considered when you’re either at capacity with strong waitlists or maintaining consistent enrollment at target levels. Making facility decisions during enrollment decline or instability often leads to overextension and financial stress.

    How Enrollment Data Can Inform Facility Decisions 3 Metrics To Track (2)

    Moving Forward with Confidence

    Enrollment-informed facility planning isn’t about eliminating all risk—it’s about making decisions based on data rather than emotion or external pressure. Schools that align facility decisions with enrollment reality position themselves for sustainable growth while protecting their financial stability and educational mission.

    The key is patience and discipline. Wait for enrollment stability before major facility commitments. Invest in data collection and analysis. Partner with professionals who understand both enrollment and facility planning. Most importantly, remember that facility decisions should enhance your educational mission, not compromise it. When enrollment data drives facility decisions, schools make investments that support long-term success rather than create financial strain. This approach may require more time and analysis upfront, but it results in facility solutions that truly serve your school community for years to come.

    About the Author

    Ashley Macquarrie

    Ashley MacQuarrie has years of experience in education and the digital marketing industry, having gained classroom experience before managing content and social media teams, developing websites, and consulting for startups and large brands. Ashley now leads the Grow Schools Marketing Team and the Enrollment Marketing team.

    In our recent webinar, Building for Growth: When Your Facility Holds You Back, we brought together facilities experts and a charter school leader who successfully navigated a complex expansion project. Here are the key takeaways that can help your school plan for sustainable growth.

    The Hidden Cost of Reactive Maintenance

    Michael Soh, Construction and Development Project Manager at Grow Schools, highlighted a sobering statistic: emergency repairs can cost two to five times more than planned maintenance.

    “The cost of immediate repairs can be two to five times higher than planned maintenance,” Michael explained. “If you have to get a rush in there, overtime, urgent services, expedited shipping for parts, and things like that.”

    His recommendation? Develop a proactive maintenance plan that categorizes issues into three buckets:

    • Critical: Major items needing immediate fixes (HVAC failures, fire alarm malfunctions)
    • High Priority: Issues that should be addressed soon (roof leaks, kitchen equipment)
    • Routine Fixes: Worn items that aren’t critical to daily operations
    AI And Your School Challenges, Safeguards, And Future Ready Classrooms (2)

    Aligning Facilities with Enrollment Growth

    Tony Solorzano, of Grow Schools emphasized the interconnected nature of facilities, funding, and enrollment—what he calls “the virtuous cycle.”

    His key financial guideline: Keep your facility budget between 10-20% of annual school revenue, with 15% being the sweet spot for most schools.

    Before embarking on expansion, Tony recommends asking critical questions:

    • Is your balance sheet healthy?
    • What’s the cost of recruiting new students?
    • Do you have a waiting list?
    • How will additional students affect staffing needs?

    “You need enrollment in order to increase your funding in order to get the facility that you’re hoping to bring,” Tony noted. “They’re dependent on each other, and they all kind of rotate with each other in order to build a healthy school.”

    Real-World Lessons from Dr. Tandria Callins

    Dr. Tandria Callins, Executive Director and Principal at Language and Literacy Academy for Learning in Winter Haven, Florida, shared her firsthand experience navigating a facility expansion while operating her school across two temporary locations.

    Her biggest piece of advice? Talk to your neighbors early.

    “I wish I would have done that a little bit earlier, really had an opportunity to have a conversation with some of my neighbors,” Dr. Callans reflected. “When it was first day of school and during my ribbon cutting, we did have some challenges and we had some issues, and they weren’t very welcoming.”

    Other critical lessons from Dr. Callans:

    • Maintain cash reserves beyond your initial budget—unexpected needs will arise
    • Choose architects with education experience—she had to switch architects mid-project when design issues emerged
    • Have a strong team—you can’t manage a facility project and run your school alone

    On working with construction managers versus contractors, she noted: “Everything was more transparent. The change orders, instead of having multiple, because change orders can be expensive…there’s cost savings in going the construction manager route.”

    The Bottom Line

    Successful facility planning requires three essential elements:

    1. Proactive maintenance to avoid costly emergencies
    2. Strategic alignment between facilities, finances, and enrollment goals
    3. Expert partnerships to guide you through complex construction processes

    As Dr. Callins put it: “Having a single point of contact definitely allowed me to continue to run the charter and take lead on the facility expansion…I would not have been able to do any of it if I didn’t have a team.”

    Watch the Recording of the Live Event Here

    Facility decisions can make or break a school’s budget and growth trajectory. Having worked with numerous schools on complex construction and renovation projects, I’ve witnessed how the difference between a smooth and bumpy project often comes down to strategic planning, professional guidance, and understanding where schools commonly go wrong.

    The reality is that most school leaders are educators first—and that’s exactly how it should be. However, when it comes to facility planning, this expertise gap can lead to decisions that cost significantly more money down the road. Understanding these potential pitfalls and implementing strategic approaches can save schools hundreds of thousands of dollars while positioning them for sustainable growth.

    Strategic Facility Planning How Schools Can Avoid Costly Mistakes And Build For The Future (2)

    The Most Costly Mistake: Last-Minute Construction Changes

    Imagine you’ve designed and begun constructing a new building, and during a walkthrough, you realize you actually need more classrooms or additional bathrooms. Making this change during construction involves:

    1.      High-cost change orders that far exceed the original pricing

    2.      Work stoppages that affect your entire project timeline

    3.      Re-engineering and redesigning portions of the project

    4.      Reordering materials, often at premium pricing due to rush orders

    5.      Additional labor costs for demolition and reconstruction

    6.      Potential domino effects on other building systems

    Work that could have been included in the original scope for standard pricing suddenly costs two to three times more when it is through a change order during construction. There will also impact the schedule and potentially delay your school’s opening.

    This is why I require 3D renderings and virtual walk-throughs for every project I oversee. These tools provide genuine visualization of your space, allowing you to “walk through” your facility digitally before construction begins. Virtual reality capabilities take this even further, letting you experience the space as if you’re physically there.

    This investment in visualization technology pays for itself many times over by catching design issues during the planning phase when changes are inexpensive rather than during construction when they’re prohibitively costly.

    Strategic Facility Planning How Schools Can Avoid Costly Mistakes And Build For The Future

    The Professional Expertise Gap

    The second major mistake I observe is schools attempting to manage complex facility projects without adequate professional support. While some school administrators may have construction or real estate backgrounds, most are educators who should be focusing on what they do best: education.

    The Roles You Need

    Essential professional roles for successful facility projects include:

    1.      Project Manager or Owner’s Representative: Someone dedicated to managing budgets, schedules, and serving as your advocate throughout the process

    2.      Architect with Education Experience: Designers who understand the unique requirements of educational facilities

    3.      Contractors with School Experience: Builders familiar with education-specific codes, requirements, and operational considerations

    4.      Legal Support: Professionals who can review contracts and protect your interests

    Schools that try to save money by skipping professional expertise often end up paying far more through:

    1.      Higher overall project costs due to inefficient planning

    2.      Expensive change orders during design or construction from poor initial guidance

    3.      Legal fees from unfavorable contract terms

    4.      Extended timelines from inexperienced project management

    5.      Suboptimal facility design that doesn’t serve educational needs

    The investment in professional expertise typically represents 10-15% of total project costs but can prevent cost overruns that far exceed this investment.

    Future-Proofing: Infrastructure and Flexibility

    Schools often focus on the visible aspects of their facilities—classrooms, hallways, common areas—while neglecting the infrastructure that enables modern learning. This shortsighted approach leads to expensive retrofitting when technology needs evolve.

    Design spaces that can adapt to changing educational needs:

    1.      Moveable partitions instead of fixed walls where possible

    2.      Flexible furniture that can be rearranged for different learning styles

    3.      Classroom sizing that can accommodate various teaching methods

    4.      Multi-purpose spaces that serve different functions throughout the day

    This approach costs slightly more initially but saves enormous amounts when educational approaches evolve or enrollment patterns change.

    Moving Forward Strategically

    Successful facility planning requires balancing immediate needs with long-term vision, adequate professional support with budget constraints, and flexibility with functionality. The schools that achieve the best outcomes treat facility decisions as strategic investments rather than necessary expenses.

    The key is starting with comprehensive planning, investing in professional expertise appropriate to your project scope, building in adequate contingencies, and designing for future adaptability. While these approaches require more upfront investment in planning and professional services, they consistently result in better facilities at lower total costs with fewer unexpected problems.

    Remember: facility projects represent some of the largest investments schools will ever make. The cost of getting them wrong—both financially and operationally—far exceeds the investment required to get them right from the beginning.

    About the Author

    Michael Soh

    Michael Soh helps schools expand and improve their facilities. Along with a degree from USC in Civil Engineering, Michael has nearly a decade of experience—having managed projects in New York City, Boston, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. He has expertise in mixed-use, multifamily, office, and commercial projects, allowing him to support schools through ground-up construction, building and space improvements, and redevelopment initiatives.

    In today’s competitive educational landscape, the visual materials you create often serve as the first impression families have of your school. Understanding basic design principles can make the difference between materials that get noticed.

    The truth is, design isn’t about having an artistic eye or expensive software. It’s about understanding how visual elements communicate and applying proven principles that guide the viewer’s attention exactly where you want it to go.

    Design That Works Visual Communication Strategies For Schools (2)

    Color: Your Brand Ambassador

    Colors communicate before your words do. In Western cultures, we already associate certain feelings and values with specific colors, making color choice a powerful tool for brand positioning.

    Color Psychology in Action

    Navy and burgundy convey trust and tradition—perfect for established institutions with decades of history and strong academic reputations. These colors signal stability and gravitas, appealing to families seeking time-tested educational excellence.

    Conversely, bright blues and greens signal innovation and energy—ideal for STEM programs, progressive schools, or institutions emphasizing project-based learning and maker spaces. These colors communicate forward-thinking approaches and dynamic learning environments.

    Building Your Strategic Palette

    Start by asking: What is your school’s personality? Are you a traditional institution focusing on rigorous academics, or an innovative charter school with cutting-edge programs? Your color choices should align with these values.

    Aim for 5-6 colors total: two primary brand colors, two accent colors, plus dark and light neutrals. This gives you enough variety for visual interest while maintaining cohesion across all materials.

    Accessibility Isn’t Optional

    Once you’ve chosen colors that reflect your values, ensure they work for everyone. Accessibility isn’t just good practice—it’s often legally required. Maintain a 4.5:1 contrast ratio between text and backgrounds. This ensures readability for people with varying vision abilities.

    I recommend coolors.co for both generating color palettes and checking contrast ratios. This tool allows you to lock specific colors and suggests complementary options while testing accessibility compliance.

    Print vs. Digital Considerations

    Don’t forget about format requirements. Digital materials use RGB or HEX values, while print requires CMYK color processes. If you produce significant promotional materials, you may also need Pantone color specifications. Document these equivalents as you build your palette to ensure consistency across all mediums.

    Finally, test your colors in real-world conditions. Print them on paper, view them on different devices, and ask staff with varying vision abilities to review materials before finalizing anything.

    Design That Works Visual Communication Strategies For Schools

    Typography: Where Small Changes Create Big Impact

    Typography might seem like a minor detail, but it’s often where amateur materials reveal themselves. The good news? Small changes here create disproportionately large improvements in perceived professionalism.

    The Two-Font Rule

    Stick to two main fonts: one for headings, one for body text. Occasionally, a third font for small accents is acceptable, but resist the urge to use more. Font variety doesn’t equal visual interest—it usually creates chaos.

    Contrast Is Key

    Your typefaces should be sufficiently different in weight and visual density. Apply the squint test: even when you can’t read individual words, you should easily distinguish between headlines and body copy. This ensures clear hierarchy regardless of viewing conditions.

    Create Hierarchy Beyond Color

    Don’t rely solely on color to establish information hierarchy. Use size and weight differences so your materials work in black and white printing or for viewers with color vision differences.

    Helpful Tools for Font Pairing

    Use resources like fontjoy.com, fontpair.co, or mixfont.com for pairing suggestions. These tools let you preview font combinations and even lock specific fonts while suggesting complementary options.

    Size Standards for Readability

    Follow minimum size requirements: 16 pixels for digital materials, 12-point for print. These aren’t arbitrary numbers—they ensure readability across different viewing conditions and age ranges in your community.

    Moving Forward With Confidence

    Professional design isn’t about artistic talent or expensive software—it’s about understanding how visual elements guide attention and communicate values. By applying these principles consistently, schools can create materials that build trust, communicate clearly, and compete effectively for family attention.

    Remember: every visual touchpoint is an opportunity to reinforce your school’s professionalism and values. When materials look polished and intentional, families assume the same care extends to educational programming.

    About the Author

    Niki is a design expert and visual communications specialist who helps schools create professional, effective marketing materials that support their enrollment and community engagement goals.

    Essential Design Resources

    Recommended Reading

    The Non-Designer’s Design Book

    More advanced reading:

    Thinking with Type: A Critical Guide for Designers, Writers, Editors, and Students

    Making and Breaking the Grid

    Designing Brand Identity: An Essential Guide for the Whole Branding Team

    The Designer’s Dictionary of Color

    Downloading & Pairing Fonts

    Google Web Fonts

    Adobe Fonts (if you’re already paying for a Creative Cloud subscription)

    Font Squirrel

    Font Joy

    Fontpair

    Mixfont

    Free Stock Photo Resources

    Unsplash

    Pexels

    Pixabay

    Color Palette Tools

    Coolors

    Adobe Color

    Muzli

    Premium Design Tools & Templates

    Canva

    Envato Elements

    Creative Market

    About the Author

    Niki Blaker

    Niki Blaker is a design strategist and founder of Five Sigma Studio—a design firm focused on bringing brand strategy, user experience, design, and content together. Her work is guided by an emphasis on cross-discipline collaboration and in-depth research that makes meaningful brand strategy and design experiences possible.