Compare two schools.
A candidate interviewing at two schools doesn’t want two separate reports. A sitting Head doesn’t read about Phillips Andover alone — they read it alongside Lawrenceville. Pick two and read them in parallel.
The Lawrenceville School
Choate Rosemary Hall
On the money side, Choate Rosemary Hall looks the stronger of the two: its finances read as strong, against stable for The Lawrenceville School.
Both hold a similar reserve cushion — roughly 7.7 years of operating expenses each.
The two are close in size — about $103.8M in annual revenue each (each enrolls roughly 843 students).
One contrast worth flagging: The Lawrenceville School spent more than it took in during its latest year (an operating loss of about 11% of revenue), while Choate Rosemary Hall finished in the black (about +5%).
A quick read of the biggest differences. Every number behind it is in the columns below, each with a plain-English note on what the gap means.
The Lawrenceville School is burning the cushion faster than the 9.1-year buffer suggests. Expenses are outpacing revenue 4.6% vs -4.9% per year over three years, and the latest operating margin is -10.6% on a 60% tuition-dependent revenue mix. Covering the deficit at today's rate, it would take more than a decade to exhaust reserves — the full budget, by contrast, is covered for about 9.1 years if every revenue line stopped. The board conversation here is the recovery plan for the residential model and the timeline to break-even. NACUBO Composite Financial Index: 3.9 / 10, adequate — monitor.
Segment note · The Lawrenceville School. The Lawrenceville School is a residential boarding school. Boarding schools operate full residential programs on top of academics, which shifts how to read the financials: (a) reserve coverage is typically longer — 5-10 years is normal vs 1-3 for day schools, because dorms, dining, and residential plant carry capex obligations no day school has, (b) revenue per student is higher because tuition covers room and board, (c) tuition dependency can be high without being concerning if the endowment cushion is deep, (d) staff comp is often higher because residential faculty carry housing and benefits beyond salary. Read the percentiles below against same-segment peers, not the full K-12 cohort.
Choate Rosemary Hall looks durable. The school holds 7.7 years of operating cushion, typical for a residential school of this scale. Revenue runs 59% tuition-dependent (peer median 75%), moderate diversification with a meaningful endowment and contributions base. Staff compensation runs 41% of expenses, well below the peer median, worth understanding why. NACUBO Composite Financial Index: 6.6 / 10, strong.
Segment note · Choate Rosemary Hall. Choate Rosemary Hall is a residential boarding school. Boarding schools operate full residential programs on top of academics, which shifts how to read the financials: (a) reserve coverage is typically longer — 5-10 years is normal vs 1-3 for day schools, because dorms, dining, and residential plant carry capex obligations no day school has, (b) revenue per student is higher because tuition covers room and board, (c) tuition dependency can be high without being concerning if the endowment cushion is deep, (d) staff comp is often higher because residential faculty carry housing and benefits beyond salary. Read the percentiles below against same-segment peers, not the full K-12 cohort.