A National Landscape Study of Jewish Day Schools
Challenge
Funders and school leaders lack current, comparable data on Jewish day school enrollment and growth potential.
While previous national studies have examined Jewish day school enrollment, the field lacks updated and comparable data on current enrollment patterns, capacity, financial accessibility, and growth potential across non‑Orthodox and Modern Orthodox schools. Shifting demographic trends, varying levels of communal engagement, and growing interest in expanding access to Jewish education have intensified the need for a current evidence base.
The Ronald S. Lauder Impact Initiative and The Paul E. Singer Foundation commissioned this study to fill that gap, producing an accurate national baseline and a data‑driven method for identifying high‑potential schools and markets. Reliable, standardized data will enable funders and community partners to target resources effectively and support long‑term planning for non-Orthodox and Modern Orthodox Jewish day school sustainability and growth.
Solution
NORC is conducting a census survey and market analysis of non‑Orthodox and Modern Orthodox Jewish day schools nationwide.
To address the national data gap on Jewish day schools, NORC will implement a comprehensive strategy that begins with conducting a census survey of all non‑Orthodox and Modern Orthodox Jewish day schools in the United States. This survey will collect standardized information on enrollment, capacity, financial aid, and institutional characteristics—producing an up-to-date national dataset for this sector.
NORC’s approach also includes a market sizing and segmentation analysis that integrates multiple data sources to estimate the total addressable market for each school and identify unmet demand across geographic regions. NORC will reconcile fragmented secondary datasets, build a complete universe of schools, and apply advanced modeling techniques to quantify market penetration and growth potential. NORC brings deep experience with Jewish communal studies and the statistical expertise to reconcile fragmented data into a reliable analytic foundation.
An internal advisory panel with direct experience working in Jewish educational settings guides instrument design, outreach strategy, and interpretation, ensuring cultural relevance at every stage of the project.
Result
Findings will deliver a census-based national landscape of Jewish day school enrollment, capacity, and growth potential, supporting evidence-informed planning and growth strategies.
The project will deliver a national baseline of non‑Orthodox and Modern Orthodox Jewish day schools—including standardized data on enrollment, capacity, financial accessibility, and school‑level conditions—along with a market segmentation analysis that identifies where unmet demand is greatest and where enrollment growth is most achievable.
Together, these findings will equip school leaders, community stakeholders, and national organizations with concrete evidence to inform enrollment strategy, financial planning, and community engagement. The study also establishes a replicable data infrastructure that supports ongoing tracking and comparative analysis as conditions in Jewish education evolve.
Project Leads
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Jenny Seelig
Senior Research ScientistPrincipal Investigator -
Tiffany Waits
Senior Research DirectorProject Director -
Soubhik Barari
Senior Research MethodologistChief Methodologist -
Zachary Seeskin
Senior StatisticianChief Statistician -
Erin Knepler
Senior Research DirectorSenior Advisor
FAQ for Study Participants
The purpose of this survey is to build the most comprehensive, standardized national picture of enrollment, capacity, financial accessibility, and growth opportunities for non‑Orthodox and Modern Orthodox Jewish day schools in the United States. Findings will help identify where unmet demand exists, where growth is most feasible, and how funders and community partners can best support long‑term sustainability.
The survey is sponsored by The Ronald S. Lauder Impact Initiative and The Paul E. Singer Foundation. NORC at the University of Chicago, an independent, nonpartisan research organization, is conducting the survey.
Your school was identified as a non‑Orthodox or Modern Orthodox Jewish day school in the United States. The study is a nationwide census of all schools in this sector, and your participation is essential to ensuring the Jewish day school landscape is fully and accurately represented.
NORC will collect standardized, school‑level information related to enrollment, capacity, waitlists, financial aid, staffing, and other institutional characteristics. These data will help assess growth potential, market penetration, and conditions supporting enrollment trends.
Participation is completely voluntary. You may skip any question you prefer not to answer. However, your school’s participation is vital to ensuring the study reflects the diversity and realities of Jewish day schools nationwide.
The survey will take approximately 20 minutes to complete.
NORC is a nonpartisan, nonprofit research organization with more than 80 years of experience conducting high‑quality survey and analytic work in the public interest. NORC has extensive experience with Jewish communal research, including major studies of Jewish population trends, campus climate, and community engagement. NORC brings methodological expertise, cultural sensitivity, and deep knowledge of the Jewish education landscape.
NORC uses strict data security protocols to protect all survey information. Survey responses may include information that allows individual schools to be identified by the research team; however, this information will be stored securely, accessed only by trained research staff, and used solely for research purposes. Results will be reported only in aggregate or in ways that do not identify any individual school or respondent. All data handling, analysis, and reporting will follow NORC’s rigorous standards for privacy and data protection.
If you have any questions about the survey or the study, please contact the NORC research team at jdsschoolsurvey@norc.org.
