Independent schools

Independent schools are schools which are not dependent upon government for financing their operation and are instead operated by tuition charges, gifts, and perhaps the investment yield of an endowment. As such, the term is essentially synonymous in the United States with private schools, but the latter term has elitist connotations for many and the term "independent schools" has been encouraged by the backers of such schools, especially since the 1970s.

The term independent schools is also occasionally used in the U.S. as a reference to a system of schools operated by a so-called "independent school district". In this case, the term "independent" generally means that the district constitutes its own authority and is not part of another entity of government such a city or a county.