Thomas A. Fordham Institute National Survey of K-12 Parents (2013)

• Generally, parents of school age students seek schools with strong math, reading, and STEM programs. Parents also want good study habits, critical thinking skills, and verbal/written communication skills
• About ¼ of parents seek schools that emphasize “citizenship, democracy, and leadership”
• About ¼ look for a school with high test scores
• Just over ⅕ want students to “learn how to work with people from diverse backgrounds.”  The study found that this was even more prevalent among African American families in urban areas
• Parents’ Top 9 highest rated school characteristics: Strong STEM, Life Skills, High Academic Standards, Gifted Program, Character Development, Uses Technology, High Standards of Behavior, Hands-On Learning
• Parents’ Top 9 highest rated student goals: Self Discipline and Study Habits, Communication Skills, Critical Thinking, College Preparedness, Social Skills, Identify Personal Interests, Love of Learning, Self-Esteem, Strong Morals

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Gallup’s Five Insights into US Parents’ Satisfaction with Education (2016)

1. 75% of all parents surveyed are broadly satisfied with the education their oldest child receives but only 36% are completely satisfied
2. 12% of respondents were from private schools and 62% state they are completely satisfied with the oldest child’s education
3. No meaningful difference in satisfaction levels for private school parents based on grade level of their oldest child
4. Levels of public school satisfaction have not changed since first measured in 2001 despite changes in presidential administrations, policy initiatives, etc.

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Parent Preferences and Parent Choices:  The Public-Private Decision about School Choice - National Research and Development Center on School Choice (2006)

• Literature supports parent selection of private schools for academics, curricula emphases, discipline, and safety
• Active choosers (our families) are more likely to be dissatisfied with public schools in their community and are less concerned with home/school travel distance
• For families with experience at a prior school, satisfaction with the prior program may play a role in current levels of satisfaction (e.g., point of comparison).  
• Parents seek involvement for three key reasons: 1) they have constructed roles that include involvement in their child’s education 2) they experience a sense of efficacy when their child succeeds in school 3) they respond to their child and their child’s school when given an opportunity for involvement.
• Most literature demonstrates academic program as the prime factor in choice
• Diversity, safety, and teaching values are factors for college educated parents.  
• Interpersonal networks (neighbors, church, other social groups) and formal networks (brochures, publications, websites) are two main channels for providing parents with information but interpersonal networks seem to far outperform formal networks with regard to the parent’s reason for selecting the school.
• Income is still the main factor in a parent’s decision to choose private school when scholarships/outside funds are not available.  
• Most parents feel a “pull” toward private school rather than a “push” away from public school or other options.
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