It's Going Up Up Up: It's Our Tuition

Next year's tuition will be $55,896, reflecting the smaller 1.9% rise. For the 2026-27 school year, the Hopkins Board of Trustees approved an operating budget keeps the increase “lower than the rate of inflation and nearly our lowest change in about 20 years,” Glendinning said.

One driver of tuition increases at Hopkins and elsewhere is inflation. The U.S. Inflation Calculator, published by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, reported that the annual inflation rate for the 2025 calendar year was 2.7%. The same source put the rate for March 2026 at 3.26%.

Compared with peer institutions, Hopkins’ increase for 2026-27 is relatively modest. In a school bulletin published in 2024, Choate Rosemary Hall noted that "keeping tuition increases at 2.9% in recent years ensures that we will continue to separate ourselves and remain an accessible choice for families.” Tuition for Greenwich Country Day School will increase 4.76% for the 2026-27 school year, according to information published on the school's website and WorthySchools.com.

Tuition increases are offset to some degree by financial aid. According to the 2026-27 Hopkins budget, communicated annually to families via email, approximately 27% of students receive financial aid, a figure in line with peer schools. Glendinning noted that "generally speaking, financial aid awards do increase at the same pace as tuition."

Each January, the president of the Board of Trustees and the Head of School send a letter to families outlining the upcoming tuition rate and highlighting programs or initiatives supported by the increase. Students are not directly notified.

Some students, however, said they were unaware of the tuition increase. “No, I had no clue," Katherine Cella -28 said. "I would have liked to find out in a very open and honest way, such as a school wide email explaining the decision with an explanation of the current budget and why it was necessary.” Henry Russell '28 said he "did not know" about the tuition increase. Angel Lu '28, Irene Kin '28 and Roya Gendron '29 also said that, prior to their interviews with The Razor, they had been unaware of the increase, though Gendron added, "I assumed it would happen."

According to the letter sent to families, next year's budget increase would “augment staffing and programming in several key areas, including computer science, counseling and community service.” Also planned is “a complete renovation of the Bud Erich Pool.” As announced on Jan. 5, Hopkins anticipates breaking ground on the 32,000-square-foot Gibbs Center for Innovation — the result of a $50 million gift from John Malone '59 — in "late 2026."

Asked whether the increase would improve their experience, students again were mixed. Lina Elwood '28 said, "I hope it will, but given that we already have an amazing education, secure facilities and a well-maintained campus, I feel that the raise in tuition could help better our experience." Walker Stollenwerck '27 said that "especially considering the tuition increase is keeping up with inflation," he did not "imagine anything is going to change." Russell also noted that "there is inflation."

Students were also mixed on whether they wanted greater transparency around tuition increases and revenue allocation. Russell said that, though "it's a normal enough increase," he would support "easier access," as he "did not know about the letter to parents." Stollenwerck said that while "more transparency is always better," he didn't know "to what extent" communication about the budget "would help students."

Glendinning said, "If students are interested in learning more about the fiscal management of Hopkins, or non-profits in general, I'd be happy to speak to people individually or in a group setting."