A qualitative phenomenological study was used in this study to explore the reasoning behind a parent's decision to send their child to a suburban, predominantly white, private school in the city of West Palm Beach, Florida, where high-income families are highly prevalent. Ten parents of newly enrolled high school students were recruited to participate in the research study. Data was collected, using purposive sampling, from 10 parents of the 147 newly enrolled high school students. Both of the child's parents were asked to participate in educational research through a demographic questionnaire, which gathered specific information regarding each parents' race, income, and educational background, as well as a Zoom interview, which posed a series of open-ended questions about their thought process in choosing the right school for their child. The interviews were recorded via Zoom and then gathered, transcribed, coded, interpreted, and analyzed to determine each family's hierarchy of preferences when choosing a school for their child. The purpose of this qualitative study was to better understand what parents value when choosing a school for their children and if these values were dependent on a parent's race, income, or level of education. The collected and analyzed data could not produce sufficient evidence of how a family's race, income, and educational background were related to the decision of choosing a private school for their child. However, the results of this study have significant implications for school leaders. The study provided private school leaders with vital, homogeneous information regarding school choice decisions and the hierarchy of parental preferences. After the data was collected, reviewed, and analyzed, a total of five prominent factors emerged. The most frequently cited factors when choosing a school for their child were as follows: academics, school location and safety, extracurricular activities, parent demographics, and student body composition. The researcher was able to gain invaluable insight into the intricate process of school choice and the hierarchy of needs that parents prioritize when choosing a school for their child. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]