Enrollment in traditional public schools declined in 2017-18. ADM enrollment is down 3,341 students over last year according to Highlights of the North Carolina Public School Budget.
That’s a fact that probably comes as a surprise to many people who are used to hearing how every school is overcrowded. Even more interesting is that this is the second consecutive year of declining enrollment, and third decline since 2014.
What’s behind the changes? A variety of factors. One is the obvious demographic shift. People are having less children. These impacts are starting to show up at schools. They may have been masked in some of the faster growing areas of North Carolina like the Triangle. However reduced enrollments – and the tough decisions that accompany them — have already arrived in areas as different as rural North Carolina and the suburbs of Charlotte.
Another factor that might explain the enrollment drop is the growing popularity of public charter schools. In 2011 the North Carolina General Assembly gave the green light to expand the number of charter schools. North Carolina now has 173 charter schools. How fast have charters expanded? In 2014, charter school enrollment was 53,000. In 2017-18, over 101,000 students attend charter schools.
Two facts will animate discussion about public education in the coming years. Enrollment in K-12 schools will decline and parents want educational options.
Competition is good.
There are over 250,000 students enrolled in 505 low-performing schools—including some charter schools— in NC’s public school system. There is a lot of room for improvement… and there are a lot of parents and families looking for better options, which may also account for some of the decline.
CMS needs one billion dollars for what?
When you have organisations like NCCivtas disseminating article like this
https://www.nationalreview.com/blog/corner/teacher-education-must-improve-programs-aim-goal/
in which the author states this
“The big problem with this “reform” is that it doesn’t do anything to address the weak knowledge many ed-school students have in general. They aren’t very sharp kids for the most part and don’t have to master any real academic discipline.”
It is no wonder enrollment is going down.
Thanks a lot for your support NCCIvitas!
“Competition is good”
And like the charlatan Betsy Devos who could not give ONE example this week of ‘competition’ improving Michigan schools, Bob can point to no actual improvement in Education in North Carolina.