Ann Arbor schools report a 96-student increase in enrollment
An increase of 96 students should put the Ann Arbor school district right on its target budget when enrollment numbers are audited, Superintendent Todd Roberts said this morning.
The district had 16,536 students in schools on Wednesday, an increase over the 16,440 during the fall 2009 count. The numbers will be audited and finalized near the end of October, Roberts said.
Wednesday’s enrollment count makes up three-quarters of the formula for state funding for schools. It is blended with a count taken in the spring to form the full funding amount, which is expected to be about $9,057 per student in Ann Arbor.
Superintendent Todd Roberts reported good news on the enrollment front.
Roberts said the enrollment number did not include Ann Arbor students participating in the Washtenaw Intermediate School District’s Widening Advancement for Youth program. He said another 25 to 40 students could be added from that program in the next week.
The main reason for Ann Arbor's enrollment boost was the decision earlier this year to allow out-of-district students to enroll through schools of choice. Several other local districts participate in the program, but Ann Arbor hadn't been one of them until this year. Ann Arbor gained about 120 students total through school of choice, school officials said.
Ann Arbor, the county's largest district, and Milan were the only districts to report an increase in students. Several districts said unaudited counts showed they had lost fewer students than anticipated. Manchester said enrollment was flat.
And a couple districts posted larger-than-projected losses, including Saline, Whitmore Lake and Dexter.
- Read yesterday's story on count day: Some Washtenaw County school districts see higher than projected numbers on count day
Kyle Feldscher covers K-12 education for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at kylefeldscher@annarbor.com.
Comments
Fat Bill
Fri, Oct 1, 2010 : 9:52 p.m.
On the other hand, at least if you are teaching 160 students per day, you certainly don't have job security issues. Art, music, and obscure foreign language teachers are constantly looking over their shoulder, waiting for the budget axe to fall...
AlphaAlpha
Fri, Oct 1, 2010 : 9:04 p.m.
Well Doc, what do you suggest?
Dr. I. Emsayin
Fri, Oct 1, 2010 : 8:58 a.m.
There needs to be equity in the number of students high school teachers see per day. Some electives have very few students while academic courses are full with 33 or more per class. This puts a strain on the academic teachers' ability to effectively reach so many students, often of differing ability levels. When we ask math and English teachers to differentiate instruction for different ability levels and learning styles, we have to understand that one academic teacher may have 160 students per day, as I have been told is the case at the largest high schools in ann Arbor. This is the first year of the new state requirements which puts further pressure on the districts in the state to make sure every student has 4 years of math and that every student has passed chemistry or physics. Previously, students could graduate with 2 years of math and two years of science without chemistry or physics. Teaching staff is under pressure to help students achieve success in these new requirements that may be difficult for part of the school population.
AlphaAlpha
Thu, Sep 30, 2010 : 9:30 p.m.
Congratulations are in order for Mr. Roberts and AAPS. Out of town folks, exerting the extra effort needed to utilize AAPS, is a good reflection.
HaeJee
Thu, Sep 30, 2010 : 4:32 p.m.
My children account for 4 and we are ecstatic to be back! We love Ann Arbor and would not live anywhere else in Michigan due to the best school system in the state.