An Outstanding School Striving to Be Even Better

THE CHALLENGE:

As one of the country’s premier independent schools, Nueva School has long been recognized for its progressive educational model, commitment to gifted learners, and unique approach to fostering a love of learning. However, with the addition of its Upper School and the evolving expectations of its community, Nueva sought to better understand key issues related to its identity, program offerings, and long-term strategy. The school wanted to ensure that its growth reflected the expectations of its high-achieving community. Additionally, Nueva aimed to assess the experience of current parents, students, faculty, and alumni in a meaningful way and understand the extent to which its mission—focused on the joy of learning rather than traditional college preparation—resonated with these constituents.  

OUR SOLUTION:

We partnered with Nueva School to refine and enhance its approach to constituent research, creating a sustainable, multi-year survey model that would deliver both longitudinal insights and targeted deep dives into pressing topics. We transitioned Nueva’s internal surveys to an optimized format, ensuring a more efficient process while maintaining continuity with past data. Instead of a broad, annual parent survey, we developed a structured research approach that allowed Nueva to gather insights from key constituencies over time, ensuring a comprehensive understanding of evolving community perspectives while maintaining the ability to act on findings strategically. This approach provided consistency in key data points and overall measures of satisfaction, while also allowing for more in-depth exploration of issues, such as the addition of the Upper School, fostering belonging and inclusion, and considered changes to the math curriculum.

Findings from our research informed tangible improvements across Nueva’s operations. Assessment of the newly formed college counseling office in the Upper School, perceptions of academic programmatic strengths, and satisfaction with co-curricular offerings increased by ten percentage points or more, demonstrating Nueva’s ability to swiftly act on data-driven recommendations. One of the most striking findings was the exceptionally high expectations of Nueva families and their equally high satisfaction with their students’ education. This affirmed the school’s success in delivering on its mission while reinforcing areas for continuous improvement. Through this process, Nueva has gained a more systematic approach to constituent feedback. The school now has a well-structured survey cycle that informs leadership decisions with data-driven clarity. Even as one of the nation’s top schools, Nueva remains committed to setting the bar even higher, ensuring its programs align with the evolving needs of its students, families, faculty, and staff while continuously striving to exceed expectations.