This Bass Connections project used behavioral science to understand how Durham families are making decisions about school enrollment. The project team mapped the points in a child’s education when families make school choices, the types of information they use and the people and networks that serve as sources of information.

Team members conducted 11 expert interviews with principals from different types of schools, academic experts on school choice, and on-the-ground preschool teachers, realtors, parent advocates, and affiliates of Durham Public Schools among different parent “touchpoints” (buying a house, graduating daycare, joining a parent advocacy group, attending a magnet school fair, etc.). They found that the system is complex to navigate, charter and magnet schools are more likely to use distinctive programing or features to drive demand, and that parents look to informal networks for help.

Timing

Summer 2019 – Spring 2020

Team Outputs

Understanding Why Some Durham Families Choose Non-public School Options (poster by Mariel Beasley, Joseph Sherlock, Jonathan Cloughesy, Laura Schaaf, Ritik Goyal, Andrew Lee, Caroline Olsen, Gillian Samios, Nicoly Santos, Nitin Subramanian, Mingyang Zhang)

This project team was originally part of the Education & Human Development theme of Bass Connections, which ended in 2022. 

Image: Durham County Public Schools (DPS 2018 Convocation), by Strawbridge Partners, public domain