2023-24 Best SSAT Prep Courses Reviewed

The questions which you will encounter in your job interview for a private school teaching job depend on the experience and skill of your interviewer. Most of the time the interviewer will be well-trained and experienced. She will ask questions which are legal. However, you should be aware that even the most experienced interviews can and do slip up occasionally and ask questions which are illegal according to the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The Civil Rights Act of l964 “prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex and national origin.” Put another way, you have rights and it is very important that you know and understand them.

Read Daniel Bortz' article on Monster.com, Illegal interview questions that employers shouldn't ask you. That will give you an overview of how things work in the corporate world as well as in small business like private schools. The problem with small organizations is that they don't always have the human resources professionals on staff to remind them of legalities such as what you can and cannot ask at a job interview.

Here are some of the things which are considered illegal for the interviewer to ask about. Incidentally, both federal and state laws consider questions about these issues illegal.

• Race, Color, or National Origin
• Religion
• Sex, Gender Identity, or Sexual Orientation
• Pregnancy status
• Disability
• Age or Genetic Information
• Citizenship
• Marital Status or Number of Children

So, what do you do when an interviewer asks about any of these things? Don't answer. Depending

Editor's note: I asked Jason How, a professional enrollment strategist and Managing Director of Agency J, to answer some of my questions about achieving enrollment targets and related matters. ~Rob

1. My school's enrollment is declining. I can't afford a marketing professional. What should I do?

Understanding what a school means when it can't afford a marketing professional is essential. Here are some guiding questions:

• Does it mean that they don't have an in-house marketing person?
• Does it mean they can't afford to hire an extra pair of hands?
• If it can't afford to hire outside help, is it because the administration made certain assumptions about the cost of hiring a marketing professional?

Once we understand what the school means, the next thing is to clarify why their school's enrollment is declining. Each reason has its solution. Reasons include:

• Declining student age population within the geographical region.
• Growing competition due to:
  • New schools are popping up in the area.
  • Existing schools are expanding aggressively.
  • Deteriorating ratings and feedback about the school's programs lead to a rise in negative reviews and word-of-mouth, discouraging others from attending the school (true story).
• Over-reliance on a single marketing and enrollment source.

It's important to get clarity on the main reason for the decline because marketing is not a magic pill that can solve every issue.

If a school has a good reputation but happens to be located in an area with fewer student-age population, there is not much marketing that can be done. Parents are not going

What is a choir school? It is a private school serving the choristers of a cathedral, college or large parish church. The choristers can be boys or girls or boys and girls depending on the institution with which the school is affiliated. The United Kingdom enjoys a long history of this genre of private school. As the Choir Schools Association notes:

"Choir Schools are amazing places where young choristers enjoy learning and playing. Their work takes them into stunningly beautiful buildings on a daily basis. There is no better educational and musical training start for boys and girls aged seven years and up who love to sing."

Residential and day choir schools have seen a steady decline in their numbers since the 1950s for three reasons. Two devastating world wars in Britain drastically altered the social and economic landscape in that country. Changing values in modern society throughout the world have seen parents choose alternative forms of education for their children. Finally, the tremendous cost of educating children in a choir school has forced many sponsoring institutions to close their schools.

Why send your child to a choir school?

I remember a parishioner years ago asking me to support her son's application to Saint Thomas' Choir School. He was an only child and, frankly, she was the quintessential velcro mother. I was pleasantly surprised that they were keen on the residential choir school at Saint Thomas Church in New York City. It was a good solution

I am assuming that your school is well-known within your local community. But what about beyond that community? Are you visible to families looking for a school like yours? How will they know that your school fits their specific requirements? Well, there are several things you can do to reach that critical pool of families and potential students.

The Invisible Stuff

SEO or Search Engine Optimization is a mystery to the uninitiated. It is one of those arcane sciences that webmasters everywhere must be aware of. Unfortunately, mentioning SEO for the rest of us prompts most of us to start reading emails and texting friends. It's all so technical. The truth is that good SEO can enhance your marketing efforts. It can make your school more visible to the audience which you are trying to reach. Weak or non-existent SEO will bury your site so that it is practically invisible. So, ignore SEO at your peril. At the least, get your arms around the basics so that you can supervise your web management and design team authoritatively.

This video explains what SEO is.

Some background

What is Search Engine Optimization? In its simplest terms, SEO is ensuring that your site's meta tags and content are optimized so parents and students can find your site easily when they type specific words into a search engine. For example, if you ask Google to show results