Auxiliary Programs: From Back Seat Passenger to Front Seat Driver

If you lead auxiliary or summer programs, this may feel familiar: you work within tight constraints with limited space on campus, finite staffing, competing priorities for facilities, and the constant challenge of doing more with less.

But change is happening.

While the day-to-day realities may still be challenging for many program leaders, there is growing recognition at a higher level that auxiliary can play a meaningful role in a school’s long-term strategy. In our conversations with Heads of School, CFOs, and school leaders at recent national gatherings, including the NAIS National Conference and the NBOA Annual Meeting, auxiliary programs are showing up more frequently in strategic planning discussions, board conversations, and leadership meetings. 

Change in independent schools is rarely fast. But auxiliary is approaching a tipping point—from riding along in the back seat as an afterthought to becoming an intentional driver of the conversation.

In a recent SPARC webinar, Reading the National Landscape, our Senior Advisors explored several high-level trends causing this shift: financial imperative, leadership evolution, and program elevation.

1. Financial Imperative

Independent schools are facing intense financial pressure. Tuition continues to become less affordable while operating costs rise, forcing school leaders to explore new ways of generating income.

According to NBOA data, auxiliary revenue now averages 6.3% of total operating revenue across independent schools, surpassing endowment draw and annual giving. Because doing nothing may be riskier than experimenting with new revenue strategies, Heads of School and CFOs are asking new questions: What is the return on investment? What programs can generate meaningful revenue while supporting the mission? How can schools better leverage facilities, faculty expertise, and campus assets?

At recent conferences, SPARC sessions focused on non-tuition revenue and auxiliary strategy drew large audiences, signaling how eager school leaders are to learn from one another. In some cases, donors are even beginning to support auxiliary programs with seed funding to help launch new initiatives. 

2. Leadership Evolution

With leadership turnover increasing across independent schools, building strong teams and institutional support has become essential. As auxiliary becomes more strategic, the definition and importance of the auxiliary leader role is evolving as well.

Today’s leaders must not only manage programs but also lead up and across the institution, building relationships with senior leadership and collaborating across multiple departments. At the same time, schools are recognizing that these roles require specialized skills, leading to their investment in dedicated auxiliary leadership positions. 

Auxiliary directors are often uniquely positioned at the intersection of admissions, finance, facilities, academics, and community engagement. Tools like SPARC’s “hypothetical org chart” help illustrate how central this role can be within a school’s ecosystem. Because of the complexity of the role, an increasing number of schools are engaging SPARC to conduct a more thorough and informed auxiliary leadership search on their behalf.

3. Program Elevation

Auxiliary programs themselves are also evolving. After-school programs, for example, are no longer viewed simply as childcare but as meaningful extensions of the school day. 

Because summer and extended-day programs can introduce new families to a school while strengthening relationships with current families, schools are designing programs more intentionally to support mission, admissions, and community engagement. At the same time, auxiliary programs are becoming spaces for innovation, capable of quickly incorporating on-trend experiences such as AI and new partnerships with outside organizations. 

A Defining Moment

The pressures facing independent schools are real: financial sustainability, technological disruption, and leadership transitions are reshaping the landscape. But within those challenges lies opportunity.

Across the country, auxiliary programs are gaining visibility in strategic plans, leadership discussions, and boardrooms. As the field evolves into a powerful driver of sustainability, innovation, and community engagement, SPARC remains committed to supporting a community of leaders who are shaping the future of auxiliary and summer programs across independent schools. Through board education, viability studies and dashboards, professional development offerings, and partnerships with independent school associations, we are helping leaders build the strategic, financial, and operational capacity needed to grow impactful (and recognized) auxiliary programs. 

- by David Sullivan and Jane Shiau