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Drop in pupils could cost $210,000
by Gregory R. Norfleet · News · November 25, 2015
West Branch Community Schools could lose more than $210,000 in state funding next year after a second year of falling enrollment.
The student population fell from 801.5 in the 2014-15 school year to 769.1 this year, a drop of about 32.4 pupils, or more than 4 percent.
West Branch receives about $6,478 per pupil, which amounts to a bit more than $210,000 in possible lost revenues, assuming state funding remains unchanged.
“Unfortunately it’s down quite a bit,” Superintendent Kevin Hatfield told the Board of Education at its October meeting, before the official figures came in. The official numbers were presented at the school board’s November meeting.
This year’s enrollment is the lowest in eight years when the district counted 767 children in 2007-08.
About a third of the drop comes from graduating 66 seniors while the incoming kindergarten only brought in 54 — a difference in 12 pupils, Business Manager Angie Klinkkammer said.
West Branch also cut its 3-year-old prekindergarten program last year due to a loss in state funding, and the rest comes from losing a few pupils at many grade levels.
“We lost a lot of twins,” Board President Mike Colbert said.
Hatfield said many families moved away after the school year started in August, with 11 or 12 leaving in late September and early October.
This year’s third-graders lost five pupils from when they were second graders last year, the most of any grade. Sixth grade lost three pupils from when they were fifth graders. And second, fifth and seventh grades each lost three pupils.
The school predicts next year’s kindergarten will include 56 children.
Hoover Elementary Principal Jess Burger said many families live in temporary housing because low-income housing in West Branch is scarce.
“If a family is behind on the rent, they have almost no option in West Branch,” she said. “They have to move.”
Hatfield noted the city of West Branch is actively marketing to home builders.
Board member Mike Owen said the same housing scarcity is true for middle-income families.
“The city is in charge of zoning,” Owen said. “Part of the reason … is that they won’t allow anything but single-family homes.”
Hatfield said the school district should encourage community efforts for growth.
Some other statistics from the annual enrollment report:
• School enrollment has fluctuated 54 pupils in the past 10 years.
• This year’s largest classes are ninth and 10 grades, each with 67 students. The smallest class is fourth grade, with 52 pupils.
• The highest enrollment in the past 10 years: 2010-11, 816 pupils.
• The lowest enrollment in the past 10 years: 2006-07 and 2007-08, both with 762 pupils.
• This year, 51 West Branch children enrolled in other school districts (but still live inside the West Branch school district); and 59.1 children who live in other school districts enrolled in West Branch schools.
• There are 287 pupils in Hoover Elementary, an average of 57.4 pupils per grade.
• There are 242 fifth- through eighth-grade pupils at West Branch Middle School, an average of 60.5 pupils per grade.
• There are 248 students at West Branch High School, an average of 62 students per grade, the highest average of the three buildings.
• The class that shrunk the most: This year’s seventh-grade class, with 64 pupils, started with 78 pupils when they were in kindergarten in 2008-09, a loss of 14 pupils.
• The class that grew the most: This year’s sophomore class has 67 students, which had only 51 pupils when they were in first grade in 2006-07, so they added 16 students.
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