School leaders are managing a complex mix of operational, safety, and student-support needs—often with limited staffing and rising expectations from families and boards. United Educators (UE) gathered input from 148 independent and charter K-12 schools to identify the most pressing risk areas. While the “top 10” risks remain largely consistent year over year, the report signals shifting intensity in several categories, including increased attention to general premises safety and continued growth in data security concerns.
As a Special Education Director who spends a lot of time in staffing conversations, parent meetings, and compliance reviews, I read this kind of report as more than a list. It’s a planning tool. It helps districts and school networks benchmark their own vulnerabilities, prioritize resources, and set realistic mitigation strategies—especially when related risks compound each other (for example: staffing shortages can worsen student mental health supports, which can increase safety incidents and family dissatisfaction, which can impact enrollment).
What the survey tells us: stability at the top, movement at the edges
UE’s top risks list is similar to the prior year, with the same seven risks holding the top spots. However, those top seven were cited by a smaller percentage of respondents than the year before. Meanwhile, the last three risks—sexual misconduct, general premises safety, and transportation—were identified more often than in the prior year, with general premises safety showing the largest increase.
That pattern is important: it suggests schools are still wrestling with familiar strategic pressures (enrollment, staffing, finances), while also sharpening their focus on risks that drive serious liability exposure and immediate harm (injuries, abuse prevention, transportation incidents).
The Top 10 Risks for independent and charter K-12 schools—and what to do about them
1) Enrollment
Enrollment remains the top risk. For many schools, enrollment is not just a marketing issue—it’s a staffing issue, a program viability issue, and a long-term sustainability issue. When enrollment dips, schools often freeze hiring, reduce services, or delay facility upgrades, which can create a cycle that makes retention harder.
- Enhance enrollment and marketing analytics to understand why families choose (or leave) your school.
- Review tuition pricing and financial aid strategy to ensure accessibility and predictability for families.
- Expand health and well-being services and innovative programming that families value.
- Upgrade facilities and technology in ways that are visible and meaningful to the school community.
2) Data Security
Data security rose to the second-highest risk and reached its highest ranking since UE’s 2018-19 survey cycle. Schools are increasingly targeted by phishing, ransomware, and accidental disclosure of sensitive information. For special education and related services teams, the risk is amplified because of the volume of confidential student data handled across IEPs, evaluations, and service logs.
- Train staff more frequently on phishing and data handling expectations.
- Create or update a data governance strategy that clarifies who can access what, and why.
- Practice ransomware and network outage response plans so leaders aren’t improvising under pressure.
- Implement clear guidelines for artificial intelligence use to reduce accidental disclosure and compliance violations.
3) Operational Pressures
Operational pressures reflect financial stability concerns, constraints on processes, and stress on the school’s business model. This is where many leaders feel “squeezed”: rising costs, tight labor markets, and increased service needs.
- Improve cost controls and review procurement practices.
- Evaluate budget models and consider reorganizing operations to reduce duplication.
- Expand auxiliary revenue streams where appropriate and mission-aligned.
4) Recruitment and Hiring
Recruitment and hiring is a familiar pain point, particularly for specialized roles: school psychologists, speech-language pathologists, occupational therapists, counselors, and special education teachers. When positions remain unfilled, compliance risk increases and service delivery becomes inconsistent—both of which can escalate conflict with families.
- Increase pay, benefits, and flexibility where possible.
- Use compensation studies to guide decisions and communicate transparently with staff.
- Refocus evaluations on engagement and growth to improve retention.
- Conduct offboarding interviews to identify preventable turnover drivers.
- Offer employee mental health supports to reduce burnout.
5) Public Safety
Public safety concerns include crime and safety for the school community and guests, including campus assailants. Even schools with strong cultures are recognizing the need for consistent training, access controls, and practiced response protocols.
- Train staff on de-escalation and recognizing warning signs.
- Enhance campus and building access security and monitoring.
- Practice incident response through tabletop exercises.
6) Facilities and Deferred Maintenance
Deferred maintenance is a risk multiplier. Small issues become major expenses, and aging facilities can create accessibility barriers, safety hazards, and disruptions to instruction. For students receiving related services, space matters—privacy, acoustics, accessibility, and predictable scheduling all affect outcomes.
- Implement routine hazard walkthroughs and a hazard reporting system.
- Review and update facility maintenance contracts.
- Create a prioritized deferred maintenance plan tied to safety and mission impact.
7) Student Mental Health
Student mental health remains a top risk and is directly connected to attendance, behavior, academic performance, and school climate. UE notes mitigation strategies such as training staff, improving infrastructure, communicating resources, and hiring remote counseling providers to expand capacity.
This is also one of the clearest areas where schools can take immediate, practical action—even during staffing shortages. Teletherapy can help schools stabilize service delivery, reduce wait times, and support students when in-person clinicians are difficult to recruit.
- Train teachers and staff to recognize concerns and respond appropriately.
- Assess your mental health infrastructure (referral pathways, crisis protocols, documentation).
- Communicate resource availability clearly to students and parents.
- Practice substance misuse and suicide response plans.
- Consider remote counseling providers to expand capacity and continuity.
8) General Premises Safety (tied)
General premises safety increased notably in the survey results. This category includes slips, trips, falls, and other hazards—especially relevant when facilities are aging, weather conditions are severe, or community use of campus spaces is high.
- Train staff and students to report hazards early.
- Improve snow and ice removal plans and document response steps.
- Analyze incidents and near misses for patterns (location, time, supervision).
- Review third-party contracts and ensure responsibilities are clearly defined.
8) Sexual Misconduct (tied)
Sexual misconduct prevention and response requires consistent training, clear reporting channels, and strong investigation practices. From a leadership perspective, this is both a student safety priority and a governance priority—because failures in prevention or response can cause lasting harm and significant liability.
- Increase mandatory training on boundaries, policies, and reporting protocols.
- Conduct thorough and repeat background checks.
- Publicize reporting channels for students, families, and staff.
- Strengthen investigation practices and documentation.
- Teach students prevention and reporting skills in developmentally appropriate ways.
10) Transportation
Transportation risk includes injury and death related to vehicle use. For boarding programs, field trips, athletics, and specialized placements, transportation is a daily operational reality.
- Implement rigorous driver safety training and repeat motor vehicle record checks.
- Require third-party providers to follow extensive safety protocols.
- Extend safety practices to golf carts and utility vehicles if used on campus.
- Review incident investigation and documentation practices.
Emerging risks: Employee well-being is the headline
UE’s emerging risks section is especially relevant for leadership teams. Nearly two-thirds of respondents identified employee well-being as one of their two most significant emerging risks. This aligns with what many of us see in schools: fatigue, secondary trauma, and workload strain—particularly in student support roles.
Other emerging risks include political climate and instability and artificial intelligence (AI). Both can intensify stress, increase family conflict, and create fast-changing expectations about instruction, discipline, and communication.
- Employee well-being tactics include compensation studies, workload reduction, flexibility, and expanded mental health supports.
- Political climate tactics include training for civil discourse and de-escalation, strengthening security, and increasing parent communication.
- AI tactics include task forces, policy reviews, training, and stronger data security practices.
Where online therapy can support risk mitigation
For many schools, the most immediate barrier to improving student mental health infrastructure is staffing capacity. This is where teletherapy can be a practical risk-management tool—not as a replacement for strong school-based systems, but as a way to stabilize services, increase access, and reduce gaps that lead to complaints, missed minutes, or crisis escalation.
TinyEYE’s online therapy model aligns with several mitigation themes in the UE report, including:
- Expanding mental health and well-being services to support enrollment and retention.
- Addressing recruitment and hiring challenges by increasing access to qualified clinicians.
- Improving continuity of services when vacancies, leaves, or midyear turnover occur.
- Supporting documentation and service consistency—key in special education compliance and parent trust.
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