Correction: A previous edition stated that 45% of the student body is directly affiliated with the university. Laboratory Schools Director Tori Jueds later clarified that she misstated the numbers: 53% of Lab students are children of families affiliated with the University of Chicago, 9% of Lab students are children of families affiliated with Lab and 38% of Lab students are children of families unaffiliated with either the university or Lab.

Laboratory Schools Director Tori Jueds delivered the first of three presentations regarding the current financial situation of the Laboratory Schools during a webinar to faculty and staff on the evening of Jan. 19, giving a thorough and comprehensive overview of the fiscal consequences of the pandemic over the past year, and the ways in which the school plans to move forward. 

The presentation drew heavily from the 2019 Strategic Framework, in an attempt to return to many of the financial engines that had been functioning proficiently prior to the pandemic. The message of the presentation was a hopeful one, with Ms. Jueds saying she “sees us starting to move forward from the pandemic,” with this year being “the beginning of our recovery.” 

In addition Ms. Jueds acknowledged the shortcomings of Lab’s financial systems, addressing issues such as “lumpy” or inconsistent revenue streams from philanthropy, and the inaccessibility to tuition for some families at Lab given its 4% increase in the past year. She also reported that 53% of the student body is directly affiliated with the university.

Later in the presentation, English department chair Mark Krewatch responded to this by posing a question about the accessibility of the school.

In a later interview, he said, “What we have to remember about the [university-affiliated students] is that it is driven by the people the university hires… When the director is saying I wanna get to the blind admissions so that kids that would be a really strong fit here and capable of being can be here without consideration of money… That is important because that can change who is part of the [students unaffiliated with the university].”

He said that this has always been an important balance to strike at Lab, and that he “wanted that question to be a part of the conversation.”

In response, Mr. Krewatch felt that Ms. Jueds was as honest and transparent as she could be.

“It’s a really hard question and she doesn’t have one answer to it,” he said.

Ms. Jueds took the time to answer all of the questions posed to her, and engaged with the audience fully.