UPrep’s budget has long been a topic of discussion among students, considering the tuition of almost $50,000.
UPrep made roughly $36 million in revenue in 2024 according to the 990, the IRS form for nonprofits, and is rapidly growing in enrollment.
Using UPrep’s budget to offer competitive salaries for staff, wages are 47% of UPrep’s budget according to the tax form, but also provide a balance of needs and facilities for students. This is to make sure that no one thing is unfairly left behind according to Susan Lansverk, Assistant Head of School for Finance and Operations.
“Having a good place for teachers to teach students is important,” Lansverk said. “There isn’t one thing that is more important, because if we neglect one, it will have an impact on students and learning.”
In 2024, UPrep built the ULab, a project that cost over $26 million and the school took on debt to complete according to an article published by Project Architect of the construction Joshua Distler.
Lansverk points to it as an example of how UPrep spends money in order to give students an exceptional learning environment.
“It added 40,000 square feet compared to 100,000 across the street, give or take, which is a lot,” Lansverk said. “Building a new facility and having this available for upper school students, it gives middle school students more room.”
When considering what programs to fund, UPrep looks to create unique and memorable experiences that students find enjoyable and have a clear value for students learning, according to Brian Johnson, Director of Middle School.
“We should be spending on creating programs and experiences for students that are not only fun, but educational in nature,” Johnson said. “Our intent is to help students socialize, get out of their comfort zone, and try new activities that they haven’t done.”
A budget consideration that may feel closer to students is clubs. The largest club in the school is Model United Nations (MUN), according to head of MUN, Anousha Mukherjee. Due to its size, the club has started to stop people who are not doing adequate work from attending conferences like PacMUN, according to eighth grader Anjalika Mukherjee, head of the middle school version of MUN and sister of Anousha Mukherjee.
“I know my sister has a requirement that they have to attend at least three meetings before going to a conference,” Anjalika Mukherjee said. “Everyone has to do the position paper. Otherwise, they get kicked out because going to PacMUN is $100 per person.”
Anousha Mukherjee confirmed the previous statements.