Student Enrollment in Idaho Schools, Part 1

Which Idaho school district with over 100 students has seen the largest percentage increase in enrollment since the dawn of the 21st century?

Meridian (or, by their new name, West Ada)? – Well, Meridian is first in numerical growth (over 11,000), but fifth in percentage growth. The state’s largest district has grown by 45% since 2001.

Nampa? – Nampa is now the state’s third largest district, with over 15,000 students, but is 8th in rate of growth, at 28%.

The fastest growing district in Idaho is the Vallivue District outside of Caldwell. Vallivue had 3888 students in 2001, and now has enrollment of 7565, according to State Department of Education enrollment statistics. That’s a rate of growth since 2001 of 95%.

Fastest Growing Districts

School districts of over 100 students that have grown by 20% (with enrollment growth) since ’01 are:

1. Vallivue (3677) – 95%
2. Kuna (1961) – 62%
3. Middleton (1348) – 59%
4. Bonneville (3581) – 47%
5. Meridian (11237) – 45%
6. Madison (1176) – 29%
7. Jefferson County (1141) – 29%
8. Nampa (3272) – 28%
9. Teton (335) – 25%
10. Twin Falls (1696) – 25%
11. Kimberly (320) – 24%
12. Post Falls (1070) – 23%
13. Sugar-Salem (277) – 23%
14. Dietrich (41) – 21%

Note that much of the student population growth is in three areas of the state: the Treasure Valley (Meridian, Nampa, Kuna, Middleton, Caldwell), the Idaho Falls area (Madison, Jefferson County, Sugar-Salem, Bonneville, Teton), and the Magic Valley (Twin Falls, Kimberly, Dietrich).

Fastest Shrinking Districts

On the flip side, as of the 2013 – 14 school year, 29 school districts of over 100 students have lost more than 20% of their 2001 enrollment. The ten that have lost the highest percentage of enrollment are:

1. Culdesac – 58% (213 to 92)
2. Kootenai - 39.6% (288 to 174) 
3. South Lemhi – 38.8% (129 to 79)
4. Bruneau-Grandview – 37.6% (526 to 328) 
5. Nez Perce 37.2% (207 to 130) 
6. Mullan 36.7% (158 to 100) 
7. Council 34.8% (333 to 217) 
8. Cambridge 34.2% (193 to 127) 
9. Mackay 31.8% (258 to 176) 
10. Salmon 31.2% (1143 to 786) 

Note that these are all small (with the exception of Salmon), relatively isolated school districts, where the loss of such large percentages of student enrollment certainly has a detrimental effect upon operations.

The median Idaho district size in 2000-01 was 942. In 2013-14 the median size was 798. Eight of the 29 districts which lost more than 20% of their enrollment were larger than the statewide median in 2001:

1. Emmett (-20%) (2981 to 2382)
2. Payette (-20%) (1932 to 1582)
3. Priest River (-21.7%) (1515 to 1187)
4. Bear Lake (-28.5%) (1501 to 1073)
5. Orofino (-27.8%) (1419 to 1025)
6. Oneida County (-26%) (1153 to 853)
7. Salmon (-31.2%) (1143 to 786)
8. Soda Springs (-20.3%) (1060 to 845)

Of the 29 districts that lost more than 20% of their enrollment, 18 have opted for a 4-day school week, while 11 have remained with the traditional 5-day student week.

Trends Among Idaho's Largest Districts

To give you an idea of changing enrollment patterns among “large” Idaho districts, here are the ten with the largest student populations, in 2001 and 2013:

2001

1. Boise – 26442
2. Meridian – 25223
3. Pocatello – 12210
4. Nampa – 11772
5. Idaho Falls – 10648
6. Coeur d’Alene – 9083
7. Bonneville – 7568
8. Twin Falls – 6869
9. Caldwell – 5665
10. Cassia County - 5119

2013

1. Meridian – 36510 (+44.7%)
2. Boise – 25978 (-1.8%)
3. Nampa – 15044 (+27.8%)
4. Pocatello – 12565 (+2.9%)
5. Bonneville – 11149 (+47.3%)
6. Coeur d’Alene – 10284 (+13.2%)
7. Idaho Falls – 10263 (-3.6%)
8. Twin Falls – 8565 (+24.7%)
9. Vallivue – 7565 (+94.6%)
10. Caldwell – 6277 (+10.8%)

Note: The Boise District had lost about 6% of its enrollment
(about 1500 students) between 2001 and 2007 during the “move to the suburbs”; since then, the district has grown by about 1000 students.

Idaho’s student population grew by 18% between 2001 and 2013, from just over 246,000 students to just over 289,000. Idaho’s districts grew by just 10% during that period, from 245,000 to 270,000. Why the difference? In the next post, data about the growth of charter schools in the state of Idaho.