School Business Plan Template

School Business Plan

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Sample Private School Business Plan

Below is a school business plan template to help you create each section of your own education business plan.

Executive Summary

Business Overview

Southside Academy, located in St. Paul, Minnesota, is a private school that has been providing quality education to the community’s school children since 2017. Southside Academy teaches elementary, middle school, and high school students in a wide range of subjects including mathematics, science, and history. We aim to provide a welcoming and inviting environment where every student can reach their highest potential.

We promote academic, artistic, and athletic excellence in a close-knit learning environment, with a challenging curriculum that cultivates intellectual curiosity. Furthermore, we offer a low teacher-to-child ratio, where teachers can build close connections with their students as they help them excel. We develop confident, continual learners by establishing behavioral supports and the social culture needed for students to achieve social, emotional, and academic success.

 

Service Offering

Southside Academy offers a premium private education at an affordable tuition fee. We provide a challenging education where students can explore their true potential and a safe space where they can freely discover and express themselves. Our students range from 1st grade to 12th grade and we teach a wide variety of subjects including:

• Basic Mathematics
• Algebra
• Geometry
• Chemistry
• Physics
• Biology
• English
• History
• Physical Education

 

Customer Focus

Southside Academy primarily serves families within a 5-mile radius of the school’s location. The area is home to thousands of middle and upper-class families looking for high-quality education for their children. Before the school was built, the area was underserved and many children had to travel far to attend quality private schools.

 

Management Team

Southside Academy’s founder is Mike Brown who has been working as a teacher for more than 20 years. Mike has taught at several public schools in the region but saw a great demand for private education. He noticed that the current location of the school was underserved and set out to create a school to serve this population. Mike Brown has successfully led Southside Academy as its principal since the school’s inception and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future.

Mike Brown is supported by a team that has experience teaching students, managing finances, and running businesses. Specifically, our team has solid experience in being effective teachers, connecting to different types of students, and achieving key goals.

 

Success Factors

Southside Academy is able to achieve success by offering the following competitive advantages:

• Location: Southside Academy’s location is near the center of town, giving members of our community easy access for parents and their children.
• Passionate and Skillful Teachers: Southside Academy hires teachers with strong academic backgrounds who are skillful in handling all types of children.
• Low teacher-to-student ratio: We provide a low teacher-to-student ratio so that every student gets personal attention from teachers to reach their highest potential.
• Affordable, quality education: Most of the schools in the area offer their services at a very expensive price. Our fees will be moderately low so that good education is accessible to all families.

Financial Highlights

Southside Academy is currently seeking additional donations of $600,000 in order to fulfill our mission. The breakdown of the funding may be seen below:

• Salaries: $200,000
• School Materials (books, toys, desks, chairs, etc): $180,000
• Administrative Expenses: $120,000 to pay for lease costs, ongoing operational expenses, and marketing.
• Working capital: $100,000

The following graph below outlines the pro forma financial projections for Southside Academy.

 

Company Overview

Who is Southside Academy?

Southside Academy, located in St. Paul, Minnesota, is a private school that has been providing quality education to the community’s school children since 2017. Southside Academy teaches elementary, middle school, and high school students in a wide range of subjects including mathematics, science, and history. We aim to provide a welcoming and inviting environment where every student can reach their highest potential.

We promote academic, artistic, and athletic excellence in a close-knit learning environment, with a challenging curriculum that cultivates intellectual curiosity. Furthermore, we offer a low teacher-to-child ratio, where teachers can build close connections with their students as they help them excel. We develop confident, continual learners by establishing behavioral supports and the social culture needed for students to achieve social, emotional, and academic success.

 

Southside Academy’s History

Southside Academy started as an idea from a group of school teachers, including Mike Brown. The teachers were university pals who are passionate about teaching and children. They have seen the gaps in education in St. Paul, Minnesota, and wanted to create a school that elevates the academic environment for the children of this area.

Their plans to build a school started in 2015, but it was only until April 2016 that they finally completed all the paperwork and met the legal requirements. Since then, Southside Academy has achieved the following milestones:

• Found a location and built the school
• Developed the school’s name, logo, and website
• Determined curriculum
• Hired teachers and other key employees

 

Southside Academy’s Services

Southside Academy offers a premium private education at an affordable tuition fee. We provide a challenging education where students can explore their true potential and a safe space where they can freely discover and express themselves. Our students range from 1st grade to 12th grade and we teach a wide variety of subjects including:

• Basic Mathematics
• Algebra
• Geometry
• Chemistry
• Physics
• Biology
• English
• History
• Physical Education

 

Industry Analysis

Education is an essential foundation for a thriving society. It’s more important than ever before that every child has access to affordable, high-quality education. While public schools are an essential option for many low-income families, the education provided by private schools often results in higher test scores and more students moving on to top-tier universities.

The private school industry has experienced steady growth in the past five years. The key industry drivers are economic growth, the rise in numbers of K-12 students, an increase in the number of families with both parents working, and government initiatives to support education.

According to Polaris Market Research, this growth is expected to continue with a forecasted compound annual growth rate of 6.6% from now until 2030. This shows that Southside Academy has great potential to keep growing and expanding. We will have ample opportunities to grow our curriculum and offer services to students that help them reach their highest potential.

Customer Analysis

Demographic Profile of Target Market

Southside Academy serves the families and children of St. Paul, Minnesota. The area is mostly populated by young couples and new families that have disposable income and can pay a premium for their children’s education.

The precise demographics of the town in which our location resides are as follows:

 

Customer Segmentation

We primarily target the following three customer segments:

• Families
• Young children
• Young couples

Competitive Analysis

Direct and Indirect Competitors

Southside Academy faces competition from other schools with similar profiles. A description of each competitor company is below.
 

Waters Independent School

Founded in 1968, Waters Independent School is a non-profit and tax-exempt independent school system. The school is governed by an independent Board of Trustees and offers preschool through eighth-grade programs. WIS is accredited by the state’s Council of Independent Schools (FCIS).

Waters Independent School has small class sizes with low student-to-teacher ratios. Further, WIS’ Programs include a strong academic foundation coupled with programs in the arts, physical education, media/technology, foreign language, and extracurricular areas.
 

Hill Preparatory School

Founded in 1923, Hill Preparatory School is a private, non-sectarian, coeducational, college preparatory day school. It offers PK-12 programs in a safe, student-centered environment. HPS supports its students through the challenges of the school year with one-on-one attention from dedicated faculty, robust services like The Learning Center and the College Center, and the most advanced educational technology. The campus spans 28 acres and has a new 60,000+ square foot facility.
 

Future Leaders Preparatory School

Founded in 1968, Future Leaders Prep is a private school for PreK3-8th grade. FLPS offers preschool, elementary school, and middle school programs and offers the International Baccalaureate program of study for all students. Teachers are endorsed in gifted education through a master’s level grant with [local University]’s College of Education Gifted Program. In addition to the school, Future Leaders offers community programs such as music, dance, art, and theater lessons through the Community School of the Arts, youth sports in the Community School for Sports, and the 7-week summer camp.

Competitive Advantage

There are many schools in St. Paul, Minnesota but none of them provides the same quality of education that Southside Academy provides, specifically the following:

• Location: Southside Academy’s location is near the center of town, giving members of our community easy access for parents and their children.
• Passionate and Skillful Teachers: Southside Academy hires teachers with strong academic backgrounds who are skillful in handling all types of children.
• Low teacher-to-student ratio: We provide a low teacher-to-student ratio so that every student gets personal attention from teachers to reach their highest potential.
• Affordable, quality education: Most of the schools in the area offer their services at a very expensive price. Our fees will be moderately low so that good education is accessible to all families.

 

Marketing Plan

Brand & Value Proposition

The Southside Academy brand will focus on the school’s unique value proposition:

• Providing premium education at an affordable price
• Providing a supportive and challenging place for children to learn
• Giving parents the assurance that their children will reach their full potential

 

Promotions Strategy

The promotions strategy for Southside Academy is as follows:

Social Media

Southside Academy will invest heavily in a social media advertising campaign. The school will utilize social media accounts and invest in ads on all social media platforms. It will use targeted marketing to appeal to the target demographics.

Publications

The school will place print advertisements in key local publications, including newspapers, area magazines, and business newsletters. Additionally, Southside Academy will print brochures and place them in specific locations frequented by target individuals.

Website/SEO

Southside Academy will invest heavily in developing a professional website that displays all of the features and benefits of Southside Academy. It will also invest heavily in SEO so that the school’s website will appear at the top of search engine results.

Direct Mail

Southside Academy will blanket neighborhoods with direct mail pieces. These pieces will provide general information on Southside Academy and incentives to enroll.

 

Pricing

Southside Academy prices its tuition at a moderate price so our students and their families feel they are getting great value when choosing our school.

Operations Plan

The following will be the operations plan for Southside Academy.

Operation Functions:

• Mike Brown is the school Principal. He manages the teachers, directs the direction of education, and serves as the head of the school.
• Mike is joined by Amanda Johnson who acts as the Administrative Assistant for the school. She helps Mike with the operations of the school as well as the marketing and administrative functions.
• Mike has hired an extensive team of highly qualified educators. Together, they teach dozens of subjects, including biology, chemistry, social studies, and mathematics. Every teacher that works for Southside Academy is passionate about education and pushing their students to reach their highest potential.

Milestones:

Southside Academy expects to achieve the following milestones in the following six months:

• 3/202X Kickoff of promotional campaign to attract new students
• 4/202X Start donation campaign
• 5/202X Hire new teachers for the upcoming year
• 6/202X Achieve donation/funding goal
• 7/202X Finalize list of incoming students for next year
• 8/202X Start next school year

 

Management Team

Southside Academy’s founder is Mike Brown who has been working as a teacher for more than 20 years. Mike has taught at several public schools in the region but saw a great demand for private education. He noticed that the current location of the school was underserved and set out to create a school to serve this population. Mike Brown has successfully led Southside Academy as its principal since the school’s inception and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future.

Mike Brown is supported by a team that has experience teaching students, managing finances, and running businesses. Specifically, our team has solid experience in being effective teachers, connecting to different types of students, and achieving key goals.

Financial Plan

Key Revenue & Costs

Southside Academy’s revenues come from student tuition fees and donations from both individuals and corporations.

The major costs for the company will be staffing, marketing expenses, location maintenance, equipment, and materials.

 

Funding Requirements and Use of Funds

Southside Academy is currently seeking additional fundraising and capital of $600,000 in order to fulfill our mission. The breakdown of the funding may be seen below:

• Salaries: $200,000
• School Materials (books, toys, desks, chairs, etc): $180,000
• Administrative Expenses: $120,000 to pay for lease costs, ongoing operational expenses, and marketing.
• Working capital: $100,000

Key Assumptions

The following outlines the key assumptions required in order to achieve the revenue and cost numbers in the financials and to pay off the startup business loan.

• Students enrolled each year:
  • Year 1: 200
  • Year 2: 300
  • Year 3: 400
  • Year 4: 500
  • Year 5: 600
• Tuition rate per year: $10,000

 

Financial Statements

Income Statement

Balance Sheet

Cash Flow Statement

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