Duluth Public Schools See Decline in Enrollment Numbers

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Year to year, Duluth Public Schools are seeing a decrease in enrollment numbers throughout the district.

A study was conducted back in 2006 that projected student enrollment numbers to decrease for a variety of reasons.

This year, enrollment has seen one of the districts largest declines yet.

According to projection reports from the district, numbers based on a weighted measure show that since December, about 190 students have disenrolled from Duluth Public Schools.

These weighted numbers have school board member Art Johnston worried about the districts future.

“Back in 1970, we had 2,500 students. We were about the 3rd largest school district in the state of Minnesota. Now, we’re about the 21st largest, we’ve had a plummeting number,” Johnston stated.

The administration says there are many reasons for this drop in numbers, not all negative. 

A few reasons include: the number of school age children in the area has declined, the long and cold winters in the state lead families to move away for periods of time, and some students are graduating early.

“Duluth hosts a number of residential treatment sites, so that’s a number that fluctuates a lot,” explained School Board Member Annie Harala. “Students move in to our district and are at places that the district hosts, like Woodland Hills. Students are enrolled for a certain amount of time that is set by the justice system and then move on to their other school.”

The administration says this decline did not surprise them, as results of a demographic study prepared them for the drop. 

The district says the good news is that the same study was again conducted this year, and enrollment numbers are projected to stabilize in the coming years.