Report: School enrollment stagnant this year
The Glacier High School gymnasium was standing room only on Saturday, June 4, at the Class of 2016 Commencement ceremony in which 301 students received their diplomas. (Brenda Ahearn/Daily Inter Lake)
Enrollment among public, private and home schools in the Flathead Valley experienced a decrease of 51 students, resulting in no percentage change compared to 2018, according to a countywide enrollment report released this month.
The grand total of kindergarten through 12th-graders is 16,422 students. Over the past decade, schools saw a 12% increase of 1,777 students.
When looking at total enrollment in public schools only, there was a 2% increase compared to 2018, representing an additional 238 students. Over 10 years, public schools grew by 11%, representing an additional 1,400 students.
The data comes from the 2019 Statistical Report of Schools. The annual report is compiled by the office of the Flathead County Superintendent of Schools using figures from an official fall enrollment count taken in October. A second enrollment count is taken in February. Figures from both counts are put into a formula to determine state funding levels for public schools.
There are currently 10,309 students attending public elementary and middle schools.
When looking at kindergarten through eighth-grade, West Valley, Columbia Falls and Whitefish school districts gained the most students year-to-year.
West Valley absorbed 54 more kindergarten- through eighth-grade students, an 8% increase from last year. Total enrollment stands at 704 students, a decade high. Compared to 10 years ago, the district has gained 242 students, a 52% increase.
Columbia Falls added 43 more K-8 students compared to last year, which is a 3% increase, bringing total enrollment to 1,491. However, compared to 10 years ago enrollment decreased by 28 students, or -2%. The school district will be building a new elementary school to replace an aging Glacier Gateway and expanding Ruder Elementary following approval of a bond issue in October.
Whitefish also underwent a 3% enrollment increase the past year, translating to 36 more students compared to 2018. Total enrollment is 1,339 K-8 students, which is a decade high. Compared to 10 years ago enrollment has increased by 217 students, or 19%. The district is nearing completion of building a new K-4 elementary school to replace Muldown.
Kalispell, which has tackled overcrowding at the elementary level, had a negligible decrease of two students compared to last year, which resulted in no percentage change. Total K-8 enrollment is 3,077 students. The past 10 years, however, have brought in 237 more students, an 8% increase. The district opened its sixth elementary school, Rankin Elementary, in 2018, to alleviate overcrowding. Enrollment is increasingly becoming an issue at the middle school level. Among grades K-8, the largest number of students are sixth- and eighth-graders.
Evergreen had the biggest decrease with 58 fewer students, or -8%. Total enrollment stands at 686. Compared to 10 years ago, there are 61 fewer students.
There are 4,422 students enrolled in the county’s four public high school districts in Bigfork, Columbia Falls, Kalispell and Whitefish.
Whitefish High School gained the most students, 54, or 10%, compared to last year. Total enrollment is 578 students. Over 10 years, enrollment increased by 86 students, or 17%.
Bigfork High School gained 22 more students, a 7% increase compared to 2018, bringing total enrollment to 342. Over 10 years, the high school absorbed 85 students, a 33% increase.
Kalispell’s two high schools, Flathead and Glacier, experienced a 39-student decrease, -1%, but over the past decade, gained 145 students, a 5% increase. Total enrollment is currently 2,844 students.
Columbia Falls High School had a negligible decrease of 3 students, which resulted in no change percentage-wise compared to last year. Total enrollment is 658 students. Compared to 10 years ago, the high school has 69 fewer students, or -9%.
Last year, the county saw its largest enrollment increase among the home-school population, which reached a decade peak. This year there were year-to-year decreases, but overall increases when looking at the past 10 years. In grades K-8 there was a decrease of 223 students, or -27%, compared to last year, with total enrollment reported at 595 students. Over 10 years, however, there were 221 more students being home schooled in grades K-8, a 59% increase.
At the high school level, 120 students were reported as home-schooled, a decrease of 61 students, or -34%. Compared to 10 years ago the home-schooled high school population gained 45 students, a 60% increase.
Among private schools, Stillwater Christian School led the pack gaining 50 students in grades K-8, a 21% increase, brining the total enrollment at 290 students. Over 10 years the private school absorbed 139 more students at the elementary and middle school level, representing a 92% increase. At the high school level, Stillwater saw a small increase of three students, or 3%. Over 10 years, the private high school added six students, a 7% increase.
The full statistical report, which includes information on school finances, is available at https://flathead.mt.gov/schools.
Reporter Hilary Matheson may be reached at 758-4431 or hmatheson@dailyinterlake.com.