This another in a series of articles about the REIMAGINING EDUCATION initiative at Des Moines Public Schools, looking at various aspects of this work, from why it is underway in the first place to how it could improve education for our students and community. In this article we look at the impact of declining enrollment and why it is one reason behind the need to reimagine education in Des Moines.
The Reimagining Education initiative at Des Moines Public Schools is about providing the best education choices that will improve student outcomes and prepare them for successful futures. There are many reasons behind this work. One is the changes in student enrollment which have had a significant impact on the operations of school districts across the country in recent years. While districts with an increasing number of students must add facilities, districts with declining enrollment face different challenges, from budget impacts to too much classroom space to maintain.
DMPS has experienced both an enrollment decline and shift. The district has seen its enrollment decrease for each of the past six years. In fact, between the 2019-20 and 2020-21 school years, enrollment at DMPS dropped by more than 1,300 students, in part due to the impact of the pandemic. Overall, the district’s largest enrollment this century occurred in 2012-2013, with 32,521 students. Today, K-12 enrollment is closer to the 30,000 mark.
The district is also experiencing an enrollment shift, meaning that some schools are seeing an increase in enrollment while other schools are seeing a decrease in the number of students. These declines are not spread evenly throughout the community nor are they focused on just a few schools.
If no changes are made to district facilities or attendance boundaries, some schools are projected to be over capacity, meaning they will have more students than available classroom space, at some point in the next five years. At the same time, other schools are currently using or projected to soon be using 70% or less of their building capacity.
There are also differences in enrollment by grade level:
- In 2023-2024, 12th grade was the grade level with the largest enrollment, at 2,363 students.
- The smallest grade level that same year was eighth grade, with 1,953 students.
- The graduating senior class is larger than the incoming kindergarten class,
Of course, student enrollment is what determines much of a school district’s finances. Because a large portion of the district’s funding is allocated on a per-student basis – approximately $7,600 per students – fewer students means less revenue. In short, if enrollment goes down then the budget must follow suit.
The Facilities Planning Committee and Reimagining Education initiative are focused on aligning the number and location of schools with student enrollment, looking at options to be prepare DMPS for the future, from the school buildings throughout Des Moines to the educational opportunities found in our classrooms.
Read more about Reimagining Education at Des Moines Public Schools
