Digest of Education Statistics
2020 Tables and Figures All Years of Tables and Figures Most Recent Full Issue of the Digest


Table 205.90. Private elementary and secondary schools and enrollment, percentage distribution of private schools and enrollment, and private schools and enrollment as a percentage of total public and private schools and enrollment, by locale: 2009-10 and 2017-18
[Standard errors appear in parentheses]
Locale Number of private schools Private school enrollment
Number Percentage
distribution
Percent of
total public
and private
schools
Enrollment Percentage
distribution
Percent of
total public
and private
enrollment
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
2009-10                                    
Total 33,370   (834) 100.0   (†) 25.2   (0.47) 5,488,490   (35,857) 100.0   (†) 10.1   (0.06)
City 10,810   (171) 32.4   (0.88) 29.6   (0.33) 2,252,780   (12,708) 41.0   (0.31) 13.5   (0.07)
Large 5,720   (157) 17.1   (0.59) 30.2   (0.58) 1,295,770   (12,556) 23.6   (0.25) 14.7   (0.12)
Midsize 2,330   (43) 7.0   (0.21) 29.0   (0.38) 467,450   (3,255) 8.5   (0.08) 12.8   (0.08)
Small 2,770   (53) 8.3   (0.25) 28.8   (0.40) 489,560   (2,569) 8.9   (0.07) 11.7   (0.05)

Suburban
11,610   (176) 34.8   (0.94) 30.0   (0.32) 2,137,800   (20,891) 39.0   (0.34) 11.2   (0.10)
Large 10,100   (168) 30.3   (0.82) 31.1   (0.36) 1,906,300   (19,948) 34.7   (0.31) 11.8   (0.11)
Midsize 830   (17) 2.5   (0.08) 23.1   (0.36) 133,270   (3,597) 2.4   (0.06) 7.8   (0.19)
Small 670   (58) 2.0   (0.18) 26.4   (1.68) 98,230   (5,743) 1.8   (0.11) 8.9   (0.47)

Town
3,340   (154) 10.0   (0.50) 19.3   (0.72) 387,920   (9,565) 7.1   (0.17) 6.2   (0.14)
Fringe 380   (29) 1.2   (0.09) 16.6   (1.05) 48,310   (926) 0.9   (0.02) 4.8   (0.09)
Distant 1,660   (154) 5.0   (0.47) 19.0   (1.43) 208,230   (9,049) 3.8   (0.16) 6.3   (0.26)
Remote 1,300   (105) 3.9   (0.32) 20.6   (1.32) 131,380   (3,313) 2.4   (0.06) 6.6   (0.16)

Rural
7,610   (799) 22.8   (1.86) 19.2   (1.63) 709,990   (26,462) 12.9   (0.42) 5.6   (0.20)
Fringe 3,940   (153) 11.8   (0.43) 23.1   (0.69) 498,680   (10,578) 9.1   (0.18) 6.4   (0.13)
Distant 2,910   (740) 8.7   (2.02) 19.9   (4.08) 168,250   (23,189) 3.1   (0.41) 4.6   (0.60)
Remote 750   (109) 2.3   (0.33) 9.6   (1.26) 43,060   (3,275) 0.8   (0.06) 3.5   (0.26)

2017-18
                                   
Total 32,460   (559) 100.0   (†) 24.8   (0.32) 5,719,990   (74,133) 100.0   (†) 10.2   (0.12)
City 10,530   (221) 32.4   (0.61) 28.2   (0.43) 2,463,590   (50,197) 43.1   (0.63) 13.9   (0.24)
Large 5,620   (196) 17.3   (0.51) 27.8   (0.70) 1,467,350   (43,383) 25.7   (0.62) 14.9   (0.38)
Midsize 2,160   (52) 6.7   (0.18) 27.4   (0.47) 469,590   (6,869) 8.2   (0.15) 12.4   (0.16)
Small 2,750   (98) 8.5   (0.33) 29.8   (0.75) 526,660   (18,397) 9.2   (0.30) 12.8   (0.39)

Suburban
12,150   (300) 37.4   (0.76) 28.0   (0.50) 2,284,510   (35,510) 39.9   (0.58) 10.3   (0.14)
Large 10,720   (329) 33.0   (0.83) 29.1   (0.63) 2,047,000   (33,681) 35.8   (0.57) 10.7   (0.16)
Midsize 940   (72) 2.9   (0.24) 22.6   (1.34) 154,970   (17,509) 2.7   (0.30) 7.8   (0.81)
Small 500   (28) 1.5   (0.09) 20.8   (0.93) 82,540   (4,032) 1.4   (0.07) 7.7   (0.35)

Town
2,750   (150) 8.5   (0.43) 17.4   (0.78) 371,150   (25,577) 6.5   (0.42) 6.3   (0.41)
Fringe 530   (43) 1.6   (0.13) 15.6   (1.07) 67,640   (2,819) 1.2   (0.05) 4.6   (0.18)
Distant 1,350   (109) 4.1   (0.31) 17.8   (1.19) 186,930   (18,132) 3.3   (0.31) 6.7   (0.60)
Remote 880   (93) 2.7   (0.29) 17.9   (1.56) 116,590   (17,818) 2.0   (0.31) 7.2   (1.02)

Rural
7,020   (336) 21.6   (0.86) 20.4   (0.78) 600,740   (25,531) 10.5   (0.41) 5.9   (0.24)
Fringe 3,550   (198) 10.9   (0.54) 24.5   (1.03) 412,990   (21,091) 7.2   (0.34) 6.7   (0.32)
Distant 2,870   (219) 8.8   (0.64) 22.0   (1.31) 150,340   (7,415) 2.6   (0.13) 5.0   (0.24)
Remote 610   (129) 1.9   (0.39) 8.8   (1.71) 37,410   (7,518) 0.7   (0.13) 3.6   (0.70)
†Not applicable.
NOTE: Includes special education, vocational/technical education, and alternative schools. Tabulation includes private schools that offer kindergarten or higher grade. Includes enrollment of private school students in prekindergarten through grade 12 in schools that offer kindergarten or higher grade. Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Private School Universe Survey (PSS), 2009-10 and 2017-18; Common Core of Data (CCD), "Public Elementary/Secondary School Universe Survey," 2009-10 and 2017-18; and Education Demographic and Geographic Estimates (EDGE), “Public School File,” 2017-18. (This table was prepared March 2020.)

2020 Tables and Figures All Years of Tables and Figures Most Recent Full Issue of the Digest