High school numbers prove to be volatile
The student section cheers at a recent high school game. It’s not unusual large swings in enrollment from the begiining of the school year to February. In some years, as many as 100 kids have left. In others, as little as 10.
A recent discussion by the School District 6 board of trustees took a turn from finances to bullying at the high school.
High school enrollment is down 68 students since September, the school board learned. As enrollment drops, so does state aid, which is based, in large part, on enrollment.
Trustee Barb Riley said that she heard that two students — one from the junior high and another from the high school were bullied and that’s why they left, insinuating that the school didn’t do enough to protect them.
Superintendent Steve Bradshaw and Trustee Dean Chisholm took umbrage with Riley’s take on the matter. Chisholm was concerned that Riley brought up the matter in a public forum — a school board meeting — without the claim being vetted for accuracy or an investigation.
Bradshaw noted that bullying is a problem in all schools, particularly with the prevalence of social media, which often makes it worse.
“Are you going to be able to totally protect each child?” he asked. “We can’t be everywhere all the time.”
Trustee Larry Wilson asked the schools to look into it further.
“Let’s look into it and get some facts,” he said.
Those answers came Monday.
While a change in 68 students may seem large, the school typically had volatility in its population. Students drop out, move, transfer to another school, decide to home school or some graduate early. Of the total withdraws this year, 19 homeschooled, 31 transferred, 14 dropped out, three were expelled and one graduated early, principal Scott Gaiser explained to the board at a work session Monday.
The numbers were on par with other years as well — ‘17-’18 saw 67 withdraw from October to February; ‘18-’19 saw 67 leave as well.
In short, there’s a volatility in the high school population that dates back for decades. In some years, the population changed by as many as 100 students.
District Clerk Dustin Zuffelato noted the high school’s actual average number belonging — the formula the state uses to determine aid and a school’s budget authority — was just five less ANB this year compared to last year. Determining ANB is a complicated state-mandated formula, but annual ANB is based in part, on enrollment figures tabulated in October and then again In February to determine an average enrollment figure.
School’s also have the option of averaging ANB over three years, according to state law.
In the Columbia Falls elementary schools, the ANB was actually up — 38 ANB — for the year.
The end result is the elementary school’s budget authority went up $380,000. While the high school’s went up just $19,000. The high school’s budget authority still rose, because the state in the last biennium increased school funding.
But with fewer kids, there’s less state aid for the high school.
The trustees didn’t make a decision on whether to float levy requests for either school population. That decision will likely come at the board’s March 16 meeting.