After several years of decline, the number of students attending California public schools recently reached its lowest point in two decades.
California public school enrollment has hit a historic low, dropping below 6 million students for the first time since before the year 2000.
The California Department of Education recently released a set of data which paint a striking picture of the situation. This year, fewer than 5.9 million students are enrolled in public schools in California, a drop of over 110,000 – or nearly 2% – since last year. The decrease even extended to charter schools, although the number attending private school increased slightly.
This latest drop is still smaller than the decrease in enrollment in the first year of the pandemic, which was closer to 3%. However, it paints a discouraging picture for those who hoped that the transition back to in-person education would bring enrollment back up to pre-pandemic levels.
Public school enrollment has been on the decline in California for several years now; in the late 2010s, it decreased steadily at a rate of around 1% per year. However, the trend accelerated rapidly in the first year of the pandemic.
The Department of Education was not able to paint a clear picture of why students are leaving the public school system, or where they are going, although it did acknowledge that the disruptions caused by the switch to virtual learning beginning in March 2020 were a significant factor.
This decline in enrollment could have significant financial consequences for school districts. Educational funding in California is contingent on schools’ enrollment and attendance numbers. Although districts were allowed to use 2019-2020 enrollment figures during the course of the pandemic, this exemption has expired and they will now receive funding based on current numbers.
“I’ve never ever seen a drop in enrollment come all at once like this,” said one educator.
However, the recent decline may have been a partial result of long-simmering problems in the state’s educational system. Even before the pandemic, many children were struggling to meet basic reading and math requirements.
Education has become a politically charged issue in California and across the country over the past year, particularly in regards to school closures and curriculum. In California, parents have begun signing a petition in support of the Educational Freedom Act, a school choice initiative which would allow parents an “educational savings account” of $14,000 per student to spend at any accredited school.
