Why Harvey?

Small classes and a warm and supportive environment in which to learn were among the most important factors influencing incoming students and their parents to The Harvey School, a recent survey found.

The survey, which was conducted by Applied Educational Research of New Jersey, is the second report to be published on the school within the past four years. It is intended to help the school better understand the attitudes and needs of prospective families to Harvey as well as assessing the effectiveness of its communication efforts.

Most new families were surveyed by the company and were questioned on a variety of topics, including the characteristics of independent schools, the image that Harvey portrays to prospective families, and its comparison to other private schools in the area.

The characteristics most important to new parents choosing Harvey over a host of other schools were small class size, its ability to make students feel like they truly belong and its supportive and nurturing environment. The personal attention that students receive from both faculty and administration at Harvey was rated by all as excellent.

Students also agreed that class size was a contributing factor to their decision making. In addition, they viewed the school’s academic program as challenging, and also highly rated its Athletic Program. The fact that friends and/or family already attend the school made a difference to their selection process.

Those same characteristics were viewed by both parents and students as being critical to academic success. Eighty-seven percent of the students surveyed felt that personal attention was the number one factor to being successful in school. Seventy-five percent believed that a positive atmosphere among their peers was also advantageous.

Ninety-six percent of the surveyed parents felt that one-on-one attention was also important, while eighty-eight percent believed the quality of a school’s faculty and class size contributed greatly to a child’s success.

When asked to describe their initial experiences with the school, all of the respondents provided positive feedback, especially in relation to the admissions process. Some said it was “painless,” others said the school’s ability to offer financial aid brought the cost of a Harvey education within range, while others said the Admissions Office offered a “strong communication stream,” making the decision to join the Harvey community a much easier one.