Abilene ISD continues to see a decrease in district enrollment. However it is not as large a shift compared to previous years.
Dr. Gustavo Villanueva, associate superintendent of student services, presented the district’s start of school enrollment numbers to the AISD Board of Trustees during their regular meeting Monday.
As of the tenth day of school, the total student enrollment stands at 14,559 which reflects a decrease of 122 students compared to the previous year, Villanueva said.
Although it appears like a large jump in student enrollment, the district saw a larger decrease of 619 students between the 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 school years.
“We’ve had, what I would say, an excellent beginning of the year. There is improvement happening day-by-day,” Villanueva said.
At the time of the meeting, the district had 90 students less than this time last year and 434 students have transferred into AISD from out of district, he said.
To maintain the student to teacher ratio of 22-to-1, the district monitors enrollment, especially at the elementary campuses, to make sure there are enough staff per class the number of students.
Villanueva reported eight teachers were transferred to other campuses in the district to comply with the student to teacher ratio.
According to the report presented, the district had 807 open seats as of Aug. 29.
Open seat vacancy shows efficiency, and compared to previous years this number is an improvement but not as efficient as the 2023-2024 school year, Villanueva said.
At the start of the school year, elementary enrollment has grown by 150 students, middle school enrollment has remained the same and all the high school campuses have lost enrollment compared to the prior year, he said.
The next regular Board of Trustees meeting is scheduled for Oct. 7 at the AISD Administration Building, 241 Pine St.
This article originally appeared on Abilene Reporter-News: AISD student enrollment fluctuates at start of school year
