Rikki Schlott in The New York Post highlights something that surprises almost every family I work with: in some NYC private schools, teachers are earning less than the tuition being paid by the students sitting in their classrooms.
I was quoted in the article about this perception gap, and it’s one I see constantly. Families assume that $70K tuition means teachers are being paid at a completely different level than public school teachers. In reality, a significant portion of that tuition is going toward financial aid, facilities, administration, and the overall cost of running these institutions.
There’s also an important nuance that often gets missed. Many private school teachers are making an intentional choice—accepting lower salaries in exchange for smaller class sizes, more engaged families, and fewer behavioral and bureaucratic challenges than they might face in public schools. It’s a tradeoff, and for some, it’s worth it.
But as tuition continues to climb, this gap is becoming harder to ignore. The framing around value is shifting, and families are starting to ask more detailed questions about where their money is actually going. Reporting like Rikki’s brings more visibility to a dynamic that has existed for a long time but hasn’t always been openly discussed.