With the start of spring comes an annual ritual. Parents and kids visit schools and decide whether they can afford to shell out thousands of dollars a year for private education.

This year, with the economy in a major slump, that decision is compounded with uncertainty about personal finances and job security. But Santa Fe once again seems to prove the exception.

Parents agree money is always an issue in deciding where to send their children, but so far the situation isn't bad enough to sway them from private schools. Local private schools have had to make some adjustments because of the economy, but most aren't seeing declines in enrollment.

Carol Ware, whose son, Xander Mojarrab, attends a private school, said her family is weighing several factors in deciding on a school. Xander is a sixth-grader at Fayette Street Academy, a tiny private school, and wants to try something different, Ware said.

Xander entered the lottery for both the Academy for Technology and the Classics and Monte del Sol charter schools. He got into ATC and is on the waiting list at Monte del Sol. But the family hasn't ruled out private schools. "Certainly, economics play a factor," Ware said. But "it was not our only deciding factor this year."

By getting Xander into a charter school, Ware said, they now have the option of waiting until high school reconsider private school.

Like Ware, David Lescht and his daughter, Esther, are considering all of Santa Fe's private schools. Esther also is on the waiting lists for ATC and Monte del Sol.

"We want to cover all the bases," Lescht said, adding that they've looked at traditional public middle schools, too.

Lescht said the question of whether Esther receives some sort of financial aid from a private school will also play into the decision.

Because they're both employed, Lescht said, he and his wife aren't forced to make decisions based only on finances. He said he knows others — he mentioned parents who work at the College of Santa Fe, for instance — who are worried that they might lose their jobs and might not be able to pay for school.

Josie Adams has paid for private school since her son, Starr, was in kindergarten. Next fall, he'll be in ninth grade at the Santa Fe Waldorf School.

The small-business owner recently took on a second, part-time job. "I did that to basically have that money go toward high school," Adams said.

It's not that her business is affected by the economy, Adams said, but she wants "to be ahead of the game" in case it is. The second job, she said, also helps to absorb the higher cost of high school.

In an effort to retain students and make it easier on parents, most private schools have decided to keep tuition increases to a minimum for the next school year, while also increasing the amount of financial aid they provide.

"We really want to keep our school community together," said Barbara Booth, head of the Santa Fe Waldorf School. "That's really the focus we've been acting on."

Booth said inquiries and applications for next school year are consistent with past years, though administrators are working with "less than a handful" of families who might need extra help with paying next year.

Despite the downward trend in fundraising for most nonprofits, Booth said her school actually raised more money during their annual fund drive than ever before, making about $90,000.

At Santa Fe Preparatory School, Head of School Jim Leonard said he's talked more about finances with parents this year than any other. But, he said, most have stable employment and are sticking around.

Even for those who have had to think twice about paying for private school, Leonard said, it might be a matter of making it a priority. "My guess is that for a lot of families, education is going to seem like a really good investment."

Contact John Sena at 986-3079 or jsena@sfnewmexican.com.