Schools may have greater flexibility in staffing using the contract option. A school district, for example, which expects enrollment to decline, can enter into short-term contracts with private-practice educators until enrollment stabilizes. Schools can negotiate the contract terms, renewal provisions, and severability clauses that meet their particular enrollment or program needs. The school can contract for as little or as much service time as required. Contracts can cover a period of several months or an entire year. And if the arrangement is a successful one for both parties, the contract can be renewed.
Schools may also wish to use the private-practice teaching option when the level of instruction needed is minimal, or so specialized that it applies only to a limited student population. For example, one public school in New Jersey turned to Berlitz Jr. to supply foreign-language instruction in Japanese to 60 students. Said school principal Karol Brancato, "What would we have done with a [full time] Japanese teacher on staff the rest of the time? . . . Contracting out is a real viable option for small programs."14(see Case Study #7.)