End-of-Term Checklist: 5 Things to Document for Renewals

Updated September 17, 2026

Before a term ends, document five things for every school site: enrollment and attendance numbers, instructor notes, family feedback, school coordinator feedback, and any incidents with how you resolved them. Do it in the last two to three weeks of the term, while it is fresh. You walk into the renewal conversation with data, and data renews programs.

The operators who have smooth renewals didn't earn them the week the school asked about next term. They earned them at the end of the term before, by writing down the things that are easy to remember today and nearly impossible to rebuild four months from now. At Journey to STEAM, 95% of our school partners renew. I treat the end of every term as the start of the renewal.

What should I document at the end of a term?

Five things, per school site. If you run six schools, you do this six times. Plan about an hour a site.

1. Enrollment and attendance. Total enrolled, average weekly attendance, how many kids finished the session, and any pattern in the ups and downs.
2. Instructor notes. For every instructor who taught at that site: what went well, how they communicated, and how their style fit that age group at that school.
3. Family feedback. Survey results if you ran one. If you didn't, what parents said to instructors, to the front office and to you.
4. School coordinator feedback. A short conversation with your contact at every school before the term ends.
5. Incidents and how you resolved them. Anything that went wrong, what you did about it, and what you changed afterward.

All of this lives in your head right now, at peak freshness. By the time the renewal conversation comes, it will be buried under the next season.

How do I turn enrollment into a number a principal remembers?

Use exact numbers and show the arithmetic. "About 22 kids" is an impression. "22.4 average weekly attendance across 31 sessions, with a peak of 28 in February" is a fact a principal can repeat to her PTO. Here is how to get there with an example site.

• Average attendance. Add up the head count from every session and divide by the number of sessions. 694 total check-ins divided by 31 sessions = 22.4 kids per session.
• Fill rate. Enrolled divided by seats offered. 28 enrolled out of 30 seats = 93%.
• Completion. Kids who finished divided by kids who started. 27 out of 28 = 96%.
• Returning families. Kids who came back from last term divided by last term's roster. 15 out of 20 = 75%.

Four numbers. One line each. The number is the story, so skip the adjectives. If you take registration in enrops, total enrolled and the roster with grade and homeroom teacher are already there. Attendance comes from however your instructors take it today, so collect those sheets before the last class.

What feedback should I collect from families?

Enough to quote, from enough families to be fair. A formal survey helps and you can do without one. If you didn't run a survey, spend the last two weeks of the term collecting what is already being said. Ask instructors what parents told them at pickup. Ask the front office what they've heard. Then send your parent list a three-question email. These three work:

1. What did your child talk about at home after class?
2. What is one thing that would make next term better?
3. Would you sign up again? Yes, maybe or no.

Question one gives you the stories. Question two gives you the fixes. Question three gives you a number. Save the replies in one place per school, and ask permission before you share a parent's words with anyone.

What should I ask the school coordinator?

Two questions: what worked well this term, and what would make next term better. Then stop talking and take notes. Do this with every coordinator, every term, before the last class.

The operators with the strongest renewal rates are the ones whose school coordinators feel heard. A coordinator who was asked in December is an advocate in the spring planning meeting. Write down what she said, write down what you will change, and send her a two-line email confirming both. Now it is on the record, and she knows you listened. For the longer view of keeping a partnership healthy, see 7 lessons from running programs at 75+ school sites.

How should I document incidents?

Plainly, the same week they happen, and again in your end-of-term file. For each one, write four lines: what happened, who was told and when, what you did, and what you changed so it is less likely to happen again.

Schools are not looking for operators with zero incidents. They run buildings full of children; they know things happen. They are looking for operators who handle incidents professionally and tell the school quickly. A clean, factual record is the proof. Keep kids' names and any sensitive details out of anything you share outside the people who need to know, and follow the school's own reporting rules first.

When should I do the end-of-term wrap-up?

In the last two to three weeks of every term. Fall, winter, spring and summer. Enrollment data is current, feedback is fresh, and there is still time to catch each coordinator before a break.

The end of the school year matters most, because summer wipes memories and people change jobs. If your contact leaves in June, your file is what introduces you to the next person. Put it on the calendar now: three weeks before the last class at each site, one hour per site.

What goes on the one-page renewal summary?

The best of the five, on one page per school. It is the page you hand the principal or PTO when you ask for next term.

• The four numbers: average attendance, fill rate, completion and returning families.
• Two or three short parent comments, shared with permission.
• One thing the coordinator said worked, and the one change you are making because she asked.
• Your proposed days, times and start date for next term.

My guide on how to get your program into schools covers the renewal ask itself and where this page fits. If a site's numbers are weak, this is also when you decide whether it earns another term. The scorecard in how to choose the right school partners helps with that call.

When the school says yes, open next term's registration while families still remember how much their kid loved it. In enrops that is a new program and a new link in under 5 minutes, with the school's calendar already in the schedule builder. See enrops for after-school programs.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a formal parent survey?

No. A three-question email to your parent list, plus notes from instructors and coordinators, gives you feedback worth documenting.

What if something went wrong this term?

Document it and bring it up yourself. Say what happened, what you did and what you changed. A school trusts the operator who raises it first.

How long should the renewal summary be?

One page per school. If it runs longer, the principal won't read it and can't forward it.

When do schools decide on next term's programs?

It varies by school and district, and many plan a full term ahead. Ask your coordinator for the date during your end-of-term conversation, and work back from it.

Where should I keep all of this?

One folder per school, one file per term. A shared drive is fine. I explain what belongs in a spreadsheet and what doesn't in can you run a kids program on Google Sheets.

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Arielle Hammond, Ed.D. is the founder of enrops and host of The Youth Enrichment Leader, presented by enrops.