The next official meeting for the USD 253 Emporia Enrollment Study Group isn’t until later this month, but group members are busy at this time.
Group members have been touring William Allen White, Village and Timmerman this week, according to Community Relations Director Lyndel Landgren. On KVOE’s Morning Show recently, Landgren said this is part of an ongoing data collection and study effort, mainly since early last year.
Other smaller factors contributing to reduced enrollment included COVID-19 and students transferring, either to other school districts or to homeschool and virtual school settings.
With enrollment declining from almost 4,750 students in the 2017-2018 academic year to around 4,320 the past two academic years, Landgren says the district is trying to make sure it has “the right staff in the right space” for students. On a separate Talk of Emporia, Superintendent Allison Anderson-Harder said the district has discussed reducing staff numbers by attrition, whether through teachers resigning or retiring and not filling the open slots. She says there’s another uncomfortable discussion point: building purposes and school boundaries. Anderson-Harder says there is no plan to close school buildings.
Anderson-Harder says USD 253 is facing similar issues as other larger districts across the state. She also says the enrollment study came about after budget concerns that demonstrated overstaffing in general, especially at elementary schools. The district has reduced staff by 8.5 certified personnel this academic year and plans to reduce almost 50 positions for the academic year beginning next month.
The study group will meet June 22, immediately after the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Jones Early Childhood Education Center. The group’s formal recommendations will be presented to the board in October. Any changes approved by the district would start no earlier than August 2023.
