US PUBLIC SCHOOL VS. PRIVATE SCHOOL EDUCATION FOR
THE EXPAT CHILD: a tipping point for a successful assignment
Choosing the right school for employees relocating to the US with children can be a challenging process. Gail Rabasca, executive vice president of global solutions at Chamness WorldWide Education Consulting, explains the US education system and offers some useful pointers to help relocating parents make the right choice for their child.
A
s part of a benefits package for employees with school- age children taking an international assignment, many organisations include tuition reimbursement. Tuition fees for private schools in the US may vary from $5,000
to more than $30,000 per year depending on the location, thus driving up the overall assignment cost significantly. Yet, most often, private school is the chosen option, without consideration given to the possibility of a public-school tenure for the child.
EDUCATION IS THE TOP PRIORITY FOR RELOCATING PARENTS Their child’s education is generally one of the employee’s top priorities when considering an international assignment to the US; ultimately, it can be the tipping point in an assignment’s success or failure if the school placement and educational environment are not meeting the employee’s expectations. It impacts the entire family and could trigger early repatriation. Early repatriation means a loss of investment in the assignment
and the potential loss of the employee from the company. The natural inclination has been that the child will receive a better education in a private school than a public school. But, is that really the case? To help protect the assignment investment, optimising the educational
choices in the US should include all options: public school, charter school and private school.
NAVIGATING THE US PUBLIC SCHOOL SYSTEM Understanding the structure of the US public school system allows the employee to compare public and private schools in the US destination to their child’s school in the home country. Having the child in the appropriate grade and learning segment within the grade provides the child with the opportunity to not just assimilate within a reasonable time, but also to thrive over time. So, understanding school levels and segmentation is critical. Public school education in the US is established by each state
government and run through its own department of education. The structural segments of education are generally kindergarten through to grade 12. These segments are classified as kindergarten, elementary (or primary school), middle school (or junior high school) and high school, with elementary/primary school generally including grades 1 – 5, middle school/junior high grades 6, 7 and 8, and high school grades 9 – 12, though this segmentation may vary slightly in any given location. Grade 9 is known as the Freshman Year, grade 10 the Sophomore Year, grade 11 the Junior Year and grade 12 the Senior Year.
12 | RELOCATE | AUTUMN 2019
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