Net Assets Financial Management Articles

Financial Management

CEO Notebook  

  • Budget
  • | Planning

Your Everyday Pursuit of Financial Health

A few tools can help school leaders and the board understand long-term school finances more clearly, talk more productively and act more proactively.
3 min read
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  • Audit
  • | Budget

Accounting Standard Updates Enter Second Year

Expense Classifications
4 min read
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Business Intelligence  

  • Endowment
  • | Investments

Business Intelligence: Schools’ Endowment Assets Grew 7.4 Percent in Fiscal 2018

Commonfund report also provides 10-year analysis going back to 2009, when returns averaged -18 percent.
3 min read
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  • Budget
  • | Facilities
  • | Key Facilities

All In: Total Cost of Ownership at Independent Schools This item is protected.

School facilities are notorious for hiding their true costs. A total cost of ownership approach can help you avoid surprises and make decisions that pay off years down the line.
15 min read
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Strategies  

  • Audit
  • | Facilities

Strategies: Blueprints and Checkboxes: Simplifying the Facilities Audit

With an affordable in-house audit, both your facilities team and your service providers will become more familiar with your campus and more invested in it too.
3 min read
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  • Planning
  • | Risk Management

The Fires Next Time: Climate Change and Business Continuity

Ensuring business continuity in the era of climate change requires thinking ahead to potential worst-case weather scenarios, and budgeting accordingly.
16 min read

CEO Notebook  

  • Leadership
  • | Planning

Where to Start with Mergers and Acquisitions? Three Considerations

Conversations around school mergers have shifted from reactive to proactive. It’s not about failure, but rather preparing for the future.
3 min read
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  • Facility Rental
  • | Financing

Found Money: Untapped Income Opportunities

Look closer. Could there be untapped income opportunities in your facilities, your programs, your operating cash and reserves?
12 min read
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  • Accounting
  • | Audit

Making a Statement This item is protected.

Near and distant changes to not-for-profit audits should provide greater transparency and consistency in describing school finances. “It’s an opportunity to pause and consider things from an enterprise perspective.”
12 min read
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Strategies  

  • Accounting
  • | Audit

Strategies: the Magic Binder

Reconciling every accounting fund every month may sound onerous, but it saves time and headaches down the line — especially during the annual audit.
4 min read
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  • Facilities
  • | Financing

A Capital Plan This item is protected.

From bridge financing to a unique co-location partnership, schools’ construction financing strategies reveal new levels of creativity, resourcefulness and fiscal prudence.
14 min read

CEO Notebook  

  • Budget

Three Positive Trendlines on the Cusp of Spring

Data show independent school finances improved last year, in terms of net tuition revenue, expendable financial resources and annual giving. 
3 min read
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  • Extended Day
  • | Planning

Extended Day, Extending the Brand

After-school programming can and should be much more than an afterthought. This school’s robust and thoughtful program is a powerful differentiator that fosters enrollment growth.
12 min read
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  • Endowment
  • | Investments

Coveting Thy Neighbor’s Returns

Jumping into private equity may look enticing, but it’s better to stick to the basics when investing for your school, according to Permanens.
3 min read
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Risk & Compliance  

  • Planning
  • | Risk Management

Risk & Compliance: Jump-Starting Enterprise Risk Management

Knowing the top risks other independent schools face can help your school avoid getting stuck in the early phases of a risk management program.
4 min read
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Business Intelligence  

  • Planning

Business Intelligence: Independent School Finances Gained Ground in Fiscal 2018

Data from NBOA’s Business Intelligence for Independent Schools reveals modest financial gains for schools on almost all fronts.
4 min read
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  • Endowment
  • | Investments

Stormy Markets, Steady Institutional Investors

Investment guidelines enable institutions to weather market volatility better than individuals, on average, and a crisis playbook can provide additional assurance.
3 min read
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Business Intelligence  

  • Budget
  • | Leadership

Business Intelligence: Markers of Sustainability

Assessing a school’s perceived value in the marketplace is one of several key data points that signal its financial health.
2 min read
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  • Budget
  • | Tuition Remission

Recruit, Retain, Remit: Trends in Tuition Remission This item is protected.

Invaluable for many employees but expensive for schools, tuition remission is evolving with schools' financial models.
13 min read

Projections  

  • Budget
  • | Financial Aid

The Financial Aid Conundrum

How can schools employ mission-fit financial aid awards without harming their financial health?
4 min read