STAR-BULLETIN / 2006
Case Middle School is on the campus of Punahou, where tuition is going up 6 percent next school year.
|
|
Education inflation
Private schools cite fuel prices in setting new, higher tuitions
Private schools in Hawaii are citing rising energy costs among reasons to increase tuition between 5 percent and 10 percent next school year.
Higher operating expenses caused by spikes in electricity and fuel prices are partly to blame for the tuition hike, officials say.
"We are, like everybody else, we are feeling the price of fuel. It's a shock, isn't it?" said George Moyer, vice president of Hawaii Baptist Academy, where tuition will go up 6.4 percent to $10,725 for grades 7-12.
Companies that bring food, paper and other supplies to Damien Memorial School began charging up to $50 extra per delivery this academic year to offset fuel costs, said Marcella Young, the school's business office manager.
"They don't foresee it going away unfortunately with gas prices still going up," she said.
A gallon of regular gasoline in Hawaii averaged nearly $3.70 on Friday, a new record high, according to AAA's Daily Fuel Gauge Report. Also, in October, Hawaiian Electric Co. boosted its rate by 4.96 percent for Oahu customers.
Punahou School spokeswoman Laurel Husain said escalating energy bills were not a major issue when administrators were debating tuition, though she said those costs chip in at a school's budget "in a lot of different ways," from busing children to field trips or sporting events to powering a campus.
Punahou will charge $16,675 in 2008-09, a 6 percent increase, she said.
Close behind is Mid-Pacific Institute, which will lift its flat K-12 tuition to $16,000 from $15,000. Iolani School's tuition will be $14,900, up 6.4 percent from the current school year.
Private school tuition rose in the islands in the past two years, in line with national trends.
On average, private school tuition has shot up about 3 percent a year over inflation in recent years, or about 32 percent in the past decade, the National Association of Independent Schools said last year.
Private school officials contend the pricier tuition is unavoidable if they want to maintain teaching quality and top facilities, and they say enrollment has not dropped despite the higher burden on parents.
"If you don't pay decent wages, you don't get decent staff," said Adrian Allan, headmaster of Le Jardin Windward Oahu Academy, which will charge $14,073 for high school students next school year, a 10 percent jump. "If you have high-quality faculty, you have a good school."
Le Jardin, which is spending $20 million on a 400-seat gymnasium and 18 new classrooms, expects enrollment to eventually grow to about 1,100 from 780, Allan said.
Hawaii Preparatory Academy on the Big Island should remain the most expensive private school in the state, with high school tuition reaching $18,250, or 6.1 percent more than what parents pay today.
Phyllis Kanekuni, public relations director at the academy, which has about 600 K-12 students, attributed some of the tuition raise to costlier medical insurance premiums and fuel costs.
"It's an inflationary increase," she said, adding that financial aid will go up by almost 10 percent.
COST RISES FOR NONPUBLIC SCHOOLS
Tuition at major private schools in Hawaii is rising between 5 and 10 percent because of expenses associated with teacher pay, technology and energy.
| SCHOOL |
2008-09 |
2007-08 |
INCREASE |
| Hawaii Preparatory Academy |
| Grades 9-12 |
$18,250 |
$17,200 |
6.1% |
| Grades 6-8 |
$15,575 |
$14,700 |
5.9% |
| Grades K-5 |
$14,200 |
$13,400 |
5.9% |
| Punahou School |
| Grades K-12 |
$16,675 |
$15,725 |
6.04% |
| Mid-Pacific Institute |
| Grades K-12 |
$16,000 |
$15,000 |
6.67% |
| Iolani School |
| Grades K-12 |
$14,900 |
$14,000 |
6.4% |
| Le Jardin Windward Academy |
| Grades 9-12 |
$14,073 |
$12,795 |
10% |
| Grades K-8 |
$13,855 |
$12,595 |
10% |
| Pre-K |
$8,833 |
$8,030 |
10% |
| St. Andrew's Priory |
| Grades 6-12 |
$12,960 |
$12,000 |
8% |
| Grades K-5 |
$12,295 |
$11,385 |
8% |
| Maryknoll School |
| Grades 9-12 |
$12,200 |
$11,500 |
6.09% |
| Grades 6-8 |
$11,600 |
$10,800 |
7.4% |
| Pre-K to Grade 5 |
$10,900 |
$10,200 |
6.86% |
| Hawaii Baptist Academy |
| Grades 7-12 |
$10,725 |
$10,075 |
6.45% |
| Grades K-6 |
$10,425 |
$9,750 |
6.92% |
| Sacred Hearts Academy |
| Grades 9-12 |
$9,689 |
$9,055 |
7% |
| Grades 7-8 |
$8,287 |
$7,745 |
7% |
| Grades K-6 |
$7,137 |
$6,670 |
7% |
| Damien Memorial School |
| Grades 9-12 |
$9,175 |
$8,675 |
5.76% |
| Grades 7-8 |
$8,225 |
$7,725 |
6.47% |
