Academy of the Pacific parents will see their costs go up about 10 percent, from $11,700 to $12,900, including fees and books.

Parents have come to expect private school tuition hikes nearly every spring. The increases may mean re-evaluating the family budget in many households.

For some, such as Robert and Michele Harris, it will mean sending their daughter to public Castle High School next year instead of continuing at Le Jardin Academy. Tuition there will rise 6.5 percent next fall.

For others, like businessman Reid Fujita, whose daughter is finishing kindergarten at Punahou, an increase in tuition means "that's money you don't get to use for other things or you have to lighten up in certain areas."

"But it's like anything, it's all related to value, the value that our child is getting from being at that school," he added. "It's an investment in our child."

At HPA on the Big Island, tuition will jump from $14,500 at the high school level this year to $15,000 next year, but that includes lunch and after-school sports programs. The boarding program is even more expensive. But parents seem undeterred.

"We have waiting lists for all grade levels," said Phyllis Kanekuni, director of public relations for HPA. "So our admissions are doing well."

By comparison, tuition at Punahou will rise from $12,800 this year to $13,775 next year, while tuition at St. Andrew's Priory will go from $9,885 at the high school level to $10,480 next year.

"A lot of it is going to salaries and technology," said Cathy Lee Chong, communications director at Iolani School, where tuition at the high school level will increase from $11,500 this year to $12,200 next.

"Tuition only covers part of the cost of educating a child at Iolani," Chong said. "The actual cost is about $16,000 and the rest is covered by our endowment and the investment income the school earns. No one likes to see tuition go up and everybody's budgets are stretched, but people seem to accept this as part of the education of their child."

Priced out

Robert and Michele Harris have been involved in school activities at Le Jardin for the past eight years. Michele even chaired this year's May Day ceremonies. But this will be their daughter's last year at the windward academy. They said they can no longer afford Le Jardin and their daughter will be enrolling in a public high school.

The family is already paying for college for their older daughter and still financially reeling from two major surgeries — his hip replacement and her open-heart operation a couple of years ago.

"People in our income bracket don't spend this kind of money (on private school)," said Michele Harris who, with her husband, runs a small contracting company, Blue Moon Builders and Home Inspections Inc. "Most of my friends who have kids this age, their private school tuition is funded by a family trust or grandparents who are contributing to it and, in my kids' case, it's not.

"For some families on a modest income, the tuitions are more than their rent. With two kids, what are you going to do? We feel Le Jardin has given her this great foundation and now it's her turn to build on it."

With tuition increasing, the private schools also hope to offer extra opportunities for students, including additional financial aid packages and advances in school services.

"Our commitment is to keep financial aid growing faster than tuition," said Laurel Bowers Husain, communications director at Punahou, where she said 11 percent to 14 percent of the 3,740 students receive some form of aid. "Based on applications and the qualification process, we've been able to meet 100 percent of the demonstrated need."

The school has more than 300 named scholarships for students, she said, in addition to endowment money.

At nearby Maryknoll, where high school tuition will rise from $9,600 this year to $10,100 next year, the approximately 5 percent increase won't just pay for increases in teacher and staff salaries and benefits but a project to create a wireless infrastructure for the school.

While school headmaster Mike Baker said he hasn't heard complaints regarding the tuition increase, he acknowledges they could be out there.

But so is the waiting list for families still hoping to see their children enrolled.

Playing catch-up

In some cases the smaller schools are launching the biggest increases and much of it has to do with staying competitive to attract teachers. At Academy of the Pacific, head of school Sperry said that while costs are going up about 9 percent that increase will mean raises for teachers of between 7.5 percent and 11 percent. It also will keep classes at a 10 to 1 student to teacher ratio and includes the cost of books and technical fees.

"It's a challenge to be tuition-based," said Sperry, whose school depends on grants from local foundations to offer financial aid. "The primary reason for the raise is we want to pay our teachers more. We need to really honor them more with a salary that's adequate and we're on our way, although I'm not satisfied yet with what they're getting."

About 30 percent of the student body of 150 receives some financial aid.

Even Le Jardin, which will have its first high school graduating class next year, struggles to provide financial aid and scholarships without an endowment. While high school tuition will go from $10,100 this year to $10,760 next year, there will be some increase in aid, with one more full tuition need-based scholarship added each year for the next six years for students from the windward side.

"Le Jardin has always lagged in its increases in tuition and we need to chase the teachers' salaries," headmaster Adrian Allen said. "Our salaries are less than public schools by quite a bit. And as you start to offer AP (Advanced Placement) classes, you have to hire really experienced teachers, and they're not cheap."

With all other costs rising, such as electricity, insurance, gas, fuel and medical coverage for school staff, at least one school is holding the line. In part, anyway.

Saint Louis High School tuition will rise from $8,200 to $8,610, but the school is holding the line at the cost of sixth grade. It will stay the same next year as it is now: $6,800.