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| Falling enrollment reflects economy Wednesday, July 14, 2010 Edwin Newton School board okays open enrollment in effort to boost numbers
For the first time in over a decade, enrollment at Springtown High School has dipped below 1,000 students.
That number was nine students shy of dropping SHS from 4A to 3A competition for UIL events when reclassification was done in the spring. But should the trend continue it’s possible the school would drop back down to 3A in 2012. This past year, the 3A cap was set at 990 students. SHS is currently at 999 – the difference between being one of the state’s biggest 3A schools and one of its smallest 4A schools. Last October, SHS enrollment was at 1042.
Declining numbers throughout the year are not unusual, school district officials say. Springtown Elementary, for example, also showed a decrease from 679 to 658 during the same time frame, and Reno Elementary and Springtown Middle School also showed slight decreases. The district as a whole went from 3,528 students on Oct. 16, 2009 to 3,465 by May 27. A couple of campuses did show increases. Springtown Intermediate went from 508 to 510 and Watson Elementary rose from 245 to 258. Superintendent Andrea Hungerford said there’s no cause for alarm. The district’s declining numbers seem to parallel some of the area’s difficult economic times. On theory is that folks are having to relocate to where the jobs are. Still, SISD isn’t standing pat. School districts are compensated by the state for each student they have in the classroom, and fewer students means less state money. This spring, the board of trustees voted to adopt an open enrollment for students not currently living in the district. That means students won’t have to pay tuition if they wish to transfer into SISD from another district. “Open enrollment works best for those qualified students who live just over the district boundary lines,” Hungerford said. “The payroll portion of the budget is more efficient when classes are full. To qualify as a candidate for the open enrollment program, students must have good grades along with good records on discipline and attendance – including passing marks on the state-mandated Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS). And Springtown must have room for them. Districts are required to maintain a 22-1 student/teacher ratio in grades K-4. “Students who meet the criteria and select Springtown ISD as their number one choice will create a win-win situation for both the campus and the student,” Hungerford said. So far, the district has added only a handful of students through the program, Hungerford said. But there is always hope for more – as well as hope for a recovering economy, more jobs, more houses and a boost in the community’s growth. Bigger is, after all, better. |