Starting A New School

Make Your Vision Into a Reality

Project Management Services

For those who have a broad vision of starting a new school but lack the resources to do it alone, ISPG has been the project managers for more than 30 new school start-ups including international schools, boarding schools, language immersion, and faith-based schools from ECE to 12th grade in the United States, Canada, and abroad.

ISPG and its Associates provides school start-up services to private schools throughout North America. Our experience of helping numerous other founders form their schools guides us in understanding the critical functions of starting a school and will provide you and your group with the strategies and tactics that will contribute to making your project:

  • Financially viable

  • Void of costly errors and missteps

  • On time and on budget

  • Stay within the financial reach of the founders

  • Exceed the expectations of the community

  • A long-term legacy of the founders’ vision

The First Step

The Financial Plan

The most important part of starting a new school is to have a well informed foundational Financial Plan.

Most of the new schools that are struggling after the first year or two are as a result of having a Financial Plan that lacks the insider metrics that private school specialists possess. This leads to overspending and overestimating revenues both of which creates a financial crisis for the new school.

ISPG creates a Financial Plan that captures all of the specific costs of starting a school based upon our work with numerous other projects, expected revenues derived from market research and our experience in attracting enrollment and constructing a revenue model that maximizes revenue opportunities, and operating expenses that eliminates wasteful spending on unnecessary equipment, fixtures, and people. The Financial Plan is the foundational document guiding you confidently through the first four years of your new school’s life .

It includes:

  1. Vision and Mission statement

  2. Start-up costs pre-opening - Equipment, staffing, marketing, educational program resources, facilities expenses, licensing, accreditations

  3. Consolidated financial projections for the first three years’ of operations

  4. A comprehensive market review

  5. Staff and faculty requirements, market researched salaries

  6. Tuition and fees

  7. Student enrollment in specific grades

  8. Detailed list of revenue items that will fund the school’s operations

  9. Detailed list of expenses required to operate the school for the first three years

  10. Detailed schedules for FF&E, capital costs, facility expenses, HR requirements, operating projections

  11. Risks and Limitations

Some of Our School Formation Projects

  • Full formation services in 2025 for two faith-based schools in Florida

  • Formation, property procurement services in 2025 for two faith-based schools in Virginia.

  • Business Plan development for a proposed new Christian high school to open in 2023 in Wisconsin

  • Full formation services in 2022 for a neuro-diverse school in Tampa, Florida

  • Full formation services in 2022 for a 9-12th grade Christian school in Los Angeles, California

  • Full formation services in 2022 for a 6th-12th grade day and boarding school Christian school in Atlanta, Georgia

  • Full formation services in 2021 for a K-8th grade STEAM school in California

  • Full formation services in 2020 for a K-8th grade school in Wisconsin

  • Full formation services in 2018 for a 6th-12th grade IB school

  • Negotiation and purchase for a 25 acre boarding school for a Chinese client

  • Formation services for a Hollywood celebrity couple’s school in Los Angeles, California

  • Location search for a Chinese/Canadian consortium’s high school

  • Full formation services in 2018 for a Mandarin/Spanish immersion school in Miami

  • Business plan development for a faith-based school in Miami

  • Business plan development for a K-12th grade school in Kuala Lumpur

  • Business plan development for a K-8th school in New York City

  • Full formation services for a school in Alabama

  • Business plan development for a school in Austin, Texas

  • Formation services for a fine arts school in Vancouver, BC

ISPG Quick Tip – If you want to significantly increase the likelihood of making your school dream a reality, the first stage of your school formation has to have these three vital components:

  1. A vision for the school shared by others who will dedicate their time and energy within your founding group.

  2. Financial resources sufficient to fund the development of your school’s business and financial plan.

  3. A driving passion that will see you through the challenging process of achieving your objective.

Whether you are looking to start a Pre-School, PreK-5th grade school, K-12th grade school or some other configuration, ISPG Associates have real-world experience based in our vast educational and business sector experiences to help you to achieve your vision.

Email info@ispginc.com call 1-800-505-8929, or reach out via our Inquire Now form to discuss your school’s needs or to obtain additional information.

A Snapshot into Starting a School

Email info@ispginc.com call 1-800-505-8929, or reach out via our Inquire Now form to discuss your school’s needs or to obtain additional information.