2022 Community Feedback Survey
In the fall, Brainerd Baptist School engaged the Southern Association of Independent Schools (SAIS) to conduct their School Community Feeback Survey. Brainerd Baptist School holds membership in SAIS along with approximately 400 other schools in our region. Their work on governance, culture, and accreditation is very important and is widely recognized and respected. This survey (which is used by many SAIS member schools) is designed to gather data on how well schools meet the expectations of their parents, families, and faculty.
We have endeavored to create a growth mindset within our community, and a vital component of this is routinely asking tough questions and then reflecting and responding to those answers. Our desire is to share the results of the survey and then respond to questions or concerns that were raised. This is the first in a series of communication in which I would like to have the platform to discuss the survey results and then respond to some items within the results. I acknowledge that this post is longer than usual; however, I hope you will take the time to read through the data and be proud of our school. While we feel validated in the work we are doing, we are also driven to continue to improve.
Survey Process
I like to describe the survey process by comparing it to the necessary annual physical. None of us enjoy the uncomfortable parts of seeing our physician annually, but we certainly recognize the value of the process. This information allows us to make changes in our habits that lead to healthier choices and improved lifestyles. I view the recent survey in a similar manner. When people are provided with anonymity, the goal is for them to be open and honest, and I believe this happened in our survey. The flip side is that occasionally, things that are critical (and sometimes personal) can also be said. My desire is to be very transparent with our families. Most of you know that I am very passionate about Brainerd Baptist School. I sincerely believe in our school and its mission. We have the most dedicated and gifted faculty in our area. They are professionals who work tirelessly to do what is best for children. While I am convinced that all of these things are true, we must always strive to improve our program. This, I believe, is what makes our school great. Over the last five years, I could easily list a dozen ways in which we have made changes to programming in the best interest of our students.
Survey Background
The survey, which was conducted back in October, has been given in schools similar to Brainerd Baptist School thousands of times. The last time we sent out a survey such as this was in 2018, and at the time were informed that our results were among the highest ever tallied. Because of that, there was an expectation that the scores on this survey would be lower. When you also factor in the effects of a worldwide pandemic, the great resignation, and the research that clearly shows people, in general, are just not as happy as they used to be, I really was prepared for the results to be much lower than what was recorded previously. The survey is all-encompassing and helps schools identify if their constituents feel like the education they provide is of good value. The survey assigns respondents into one of three categories based on their responses: Promotor, Passive, or Detractor. Let’s start out by looking at the scores and details from our parent survey.
Parent Net Promoter Score (NPS) - 80. The Parent NPS mean for all schools (K-12 and elementary) is 59, and the mean score for elementary-only schools is 67. This higher score tends to support a widely held opinion that lower schools tend to be happier places when compared to high schools. Our NPS was a 92 in 2018. As you can see, our survey results overwhelmingly indicate that parents continue to strongly believe that we are fulfilling our mission and operating from a position of strength. Our parents shared many valuable comments (over 15 pages, to be exact!), and we have spent time reading and reflecting on those. We certainly love the positive comments, but we are also intent on reviewing the “not-so-flattering” comments and making improvements where necessary.
Faculty Net Promoter Score (NPS) - 100. This is a massive accomplishment for our school. According to SAIS, a score of 100 is rarely ever seen from a faculty group. The mean score for Faculty NPS in elementary schools is 75. This score shows that our faculty is happy in the workplace and fully committed to the mission of Brainerd Baptist School. Another important factor to consider when looking at this score is that we have just come out of an unprecedented period of time where data shows teachers (across the country) have chosen to leave the profession. Additionally, SAIS reports that Faculty NPS scores have trended down since 2020. Now, more than ever, it is clear our faculty enjoy working at Brainerd Baptist School, and this happiness manifests itself in the amazing things they do each day.
As you can see, there is much to be proud of, but we also understand we have room for improvement. I will be writing and sharing some of those things over the next couple of weeks. The full report is attached for those who want to review it.