Enrollment growth continues in Northwest Arkansas schools

NORTHWEST ARKANSAS — Most Northwest Arkansas school districts welcomed more students into their classrooms on the first day of school than they did last year. First-day enrollment in public schools was up 2.5 percent overall from the same point a year earlier, according to figures provided by the districts and charter schools of Benton and Washington counties.

Some of the smaller districts had the largest gains by percentage. Pea Ridge and Gravette led the way with enrollment increases of about 5 percent. The largest districts -- Springdale, Bentonville, Rogers and Fayetteville -- had increases ranging from 1.9 percent to 2.4 percent.

Enrollment numbers fluctuate greatly during the first month of a school year. Fayetteville, for example, reported 9,525 students as of Aug. 14; eight days later, the count was 9,826, according to Alan Wilbourn, district spokesman.

Official enrollment figures are recorded each Oct. 1. Fayetteville expects its official enrollment to be up 150 to 200 students over last year's 9,864. Superintendent Matthew Wendt said he likes that kind of growth.

"What I appreciate is, we haven't just opened the floodgates and built houses anywhere and everywhere. That creates systemic issues," Wendt said. "I really appreciate our city leaders having a plan that enables growth, but manageable growth. We all love Fayetteville, but with too much growth over a period of time Fayetteville begins to change, and I don't believe people want that."

The district expects a demographic report to be completed this fall to project enrollment for the next five to 10 years, Wendt said.

"That's going to help us immensely with our planning, and I'm really looking forward to that data," Wendt said.

Bentonville School District opened a new elementary and middle school this month to relieve overcrowding. Still, some elementary schools are full, said Superintendent Debbie Jones.

"But we have found a place for everyone," she said.

At Elm Tree and Thomas Jefferson elementary schools, two classes have been combined into one room to make the most of the space available. A 12th elementary school is set to open in 2019.

Bentonville's enrollment has increased about 15 percent over the past five years. Officials are projecting an average of 3.5 percent growth each year for the next several years.

A combination of high academic achievement and a good, safe community attracts people to town, Jones said.

Niche.com, which ranks schools and school districts using key statistics and students' and parents' reviews, named Bentonville the best district in the state in its latest rankings. Three other Northwest Arkansas districts -- No. 2 Fayetteville, No. 7 Rogers and No. 9 Springdale -- made the top 10.

Mike Harvey, chief operating officer for the Northwest Arkansas Council, said school quality is one of the top considerations for a family considering moving.

"That is probably a top-three consideration, if not the top consideration for a lot of families," Harvey said.

Human resource managers in the area frequently ask the council for data about local schools to give people thinking of moving here, he said.

Enrollment in the Pea Ridge district has increased more than 40 percent over the past decade, making it one of the fastest-growing districts in the state.

Superintendent Rick Neal said the high school is "extremely full." The district's growth this year, however, was more in its primary and intermediate buildings than anywhere else. Pea Ridge Intermediate School, which serves grades three through five, has 45 more students than last year, he said.

The district requested a 5.1-mill tax increase in May primarily to pay for a new high school, but residents rejected it by a 494 (54 percent) to 421 (46 percent) vote. The district is revising its proposal to make another run at a millage request in February.

"It will be a better plan," Neal said.

Elkins School District had a 4 percent increase on the first day of school from last year's first day. Growth at the kindergarten level prompted the district to add a sixth section.

Enrollment has grown slowly but steadily over the past three years, said Superintendent Dan Jordan.

"I do foresee that trend growing," Jordan said. "There's some residential construction going on out here in our district."

Elkins has benefited from the state's school choice law, gaining about 40 students from other districts and losing only one, he said. Most of those students live in either the Fayetteville or Huntsville districts.

Gentry's first-day number was 1,476, an increase of 54 students, or 3.8 percent, from last year. Superintendent Terrie Metz said there's no indication that kind of growth will continue, as enrollment typically has stayed in the 1,400 range for over a decade.

Gentry has some apartment complexes on the way, but the district is unsure how they will affect enrollment. In any case, she said, "We have room to grow."

Just as the traditional public school districts continue to grow, so do the region's open-enrollment charter schools, which now claim about 3 percent of students attending public schools in the region.

Haas Hall Academy, ranked by U.S. News & World Report as the best high school in Arkansas, added campuses in Rogers and Springdale, joining existing campuses in Fayetteville and Bentonville.

Two other charter schools added enrollment in part by adding a grade level. Ozark Montessori Academy in Springdale added eighth grade. Northwest Arkansas Classical Academy, now in its fifth year, added a senior class, making it a kindergarten-through-12th-grade school.

Enrollment

Here are enrollment figures from Northwest Arkansas school districts for the first day of school this year and last year.

School District20162017*Percent change

Bentonville16,89617,217*1.9 percent

Decatur582574*-1.4 percent

Elkins1,1781,227*4.2 percent

Farmington2,4942,491*-0.1 percent

Fayetteville9,3219,525*2.2 percent

Gentry1,4221,476*3.8 percent

Gravette1,8751,967*4.9 percent

Greenland799770*-3.6 percent

Lincoln1,1871,191*0.3 percent

Pea Ridge2,0562,161*5.1 percent

Prairie Grove1,9081,949*2.1 percent

Rogers15,48615,857*2.4 percent

Siloam Springs4,2324,299*1.6 percent

Springdale21,52721,958*2.0 percent

West Fork1,0771,006*-6.6 percent

Total school district enrollment82,04083,668*2.0 percent

CHARTER SCHOOLS

Arkansas Arts Academy775817*5.4 percent

Haas Hall Academy6451,017*57.7 percent^

Northwest Arkansas Classical Academy560580*3.6 percent

Ozark Montessori Academy195250*28.2 percent

Total charter school enrollment2,1752,664*22.5 percent

TOTAL, SCHOOL DISTRICTS AND CHARTERS84,21586,332*2.5 percent

^_Includes campuses in Fayetteville, Bentonville, Springdale and Rogers, the latter two of which opened this year.

Source: Staff report

General News on 08/30/2017