Enrollment in Durham Public Schools is down by more than 1,000 students from the last academic year, with 30,172 students enrolled in DPS, far fewer than the district originally projected.
The news, based on preliminary district numbers, was shared at Thursday’s school board meeting by DPS School Planner Vitaly Radsky.
“The enrollment data is sobering…for us,” board member Bettina Umstead said at the meeting. “What do we need to do to make sure families know that [Durham Public Schools are] the best option?”
Radsky said the enrollment decreases were “pretty much across the board.”
The ninth grade saw the steepest decline in enrolled students, with 292 fewer students in this school year compared to the year before. The third grade and kindergarten were also significantly impacted, as enrollment decreased by 199 and 151 students respectively.
The eleventh and twelfth grades showed minor increases in enrollment, with a total of 56 additional students enrolled.
This year marks an unprecedented low in DPS enrollment, which peaked in 2014 with 33,651 students. The district has yet to recover from the effects of the pandemic in 2020, when schools lost more than 1,500 students.
Radsky attributed the decline partly to the rising popularity of charter schools and private schools. As state-funded private school scholarships have grown more accessible, the number of students enrolling in private schools across Durham County has dramatically increased.
This year, over 2,400 students in Durham received Opportunity Scholarships, according to the N.C. Education Assistance Authority. That continues a rise from 2022, when just around 800 students enrolled in private schools through these scholarships.
Families that choose charter schools over public schools for their children may also contribute to this year’s decreased enrollment, Radsky said.
Data from the state Department of Public Instruction show that enrollment in charter schools has steadily increased over the last decade. In 2012, charter enrollment in Durham County stood at over 3,500 students; just last year it reached a high of almost 8,300.
“Your best choice is Durham Public Schools,” board member Natalie Beyer asserted, looking across the room. “More choice is not always better. And you can be doing harm by enrolling your child in a Durham charter school.”
Superintendent Anthony Lewis said the idea that charter schools are better than public schools in Durham is a myth. He pointed to DPS’ recent improved academic performance numbers as evidence.
“Eighty-nine percent of our schools met or exceeded growth, while seventy-one percent of charter schools met or exceeded growth,” he said, citing this year’s state numbers.
Not everyone placed the blame on families for choosing not to enroll in Durham’s public schools.
“Families make decisions that they believe are in the best interests of their kid and of their family,” Umstead countered. “I personally try not to villainize too much…sometimes [DPS isn’t] the best option because of things that we haven’t improved on.”
In an effort to increase its appeal and bolster enrollment numbers, DPS has undertaken various media campaigns promoting its schools. According to Chief Communications Officer Sheena Cooper, the district recently launched a series profiling public schools across Durham on the school system webpage and social media.
The district has also initiated direct email campaigns to rising sixth-graders and ninth-graders, Cooper said, “telling them about opportunities, encouraging them to explore their school options, and…talking about the programs that are available to them in Durham Public Schools.”
Radsky, the school planner, also noted the potential effect of lower birth rates on enrollment. In 2020, he said, there were nearly 150 fewer Durham births than in 2019. That cohort of children entered kindergarten this fall.
“This probably does not explain all of the decrease in kindergarten enrollment,” Radsky conceded, “but it could be part of the story.”
Other possible explanations for the declining enrollment numbers were raised by board members in discussion. Beyer suggested that immigrant families could be “impacting our data in explicit ways,” especially in light of fears that students could be detained at school by law enforcement.
On top of that, a lack of after-school programming and recurrent DPS transportation issues may also be affecting enrollment decisions, said Umstead.
The preliminary numbers refer to enrollment on the twentieth day of classes as recorded by Infinite Campus, the district’s student information system. Official enrollment is typically counted at the end of the second month of school by the state Department of Public Instruction.
“There could be some changes with the numbers,” Radsky said, “but I think the basic story will be similar.”
Once official enrollment data is available in November or December, according to Radsky, the district will conduct further enrollment forecasting and analysis in collaboration with Duke University through a grant from the Spencer Foundation.
