Strong school enrollment gains at Cabool and Licking offset losses in other districts as the new year began, according to a tally from Texas County schools.
In all, 3,744 students are enrolled in the county’s school districts. That’s nearly unchanged from the end of the last school year when 3,774 were in classrooms.
At Licking, enrollment jumped by 28. Cabool has 20 more pupils in classrooms. The biggest decline occurred at Plato, where the census dropped by 48, but there were signs that number would narrow. Summersville also declined. Enrollment was steady at Houston, Success and Raymondville.
At Houston, enrollment remained constant, said Dr. Justin Copley, superintendent. There are 1,010 students. That’s up two from the last day of school in May, he said.
“Our overall district enrollment has remained very close to the previous year. The average class size, kindergarten through 12th grade, is 72 with our largest class at 105 and our two smallest classes at 48 students (kindergarten and fifth grade). “We will continue to monitor enrollment throughout the year and projections into the future,” he said.
At Cabool, the district experienced one of the biggest increases in the county. There were 734 in classroom seats on the first day of classes. That’s up from 714 at the end of the last school year, said Dr. Karl Janson, superintendent. “The amount of available housing has led to a growth in our enrollment,” he said.
Summersville’s enrollment decreased. It dropped 27 from the last day of school in May. The headcount was at 427, said Dr. Amber Hunt, superintendent. Part of the reduction is attributed to a new Christian school opened locally.
At Raymondville, the census was down six to 123. At Success, enrollment increased by one to 109. Both are schools with students through eighth grade.
At Plato, it dropped by 48 students on the first day to 525. The current enrollment situation reflects a unique blend of factors: A combination of military service families enrolling in September and an unusually small kindergarten cohort. Last year, the district graduated 52 seniors, and this year kindergarten started with 22. Additionally, it will fill five available spots in the pre-kindergarten program.
At Licking, enrollment is up 28 from the end of the last school year, jumping from 788 to 816. “We have a large kindergarten group this year, and several students from families who have recently moved within district boundaries from outside of the local area,” said Telena Haneline, superintendent.