School enrollment levels after years of decline
By Alice Keesing
Advertiser Education Writer
The number of students attending public schools in Hawai'i steadied this year after several years of declining enrollment.
There are 183,629 students in public schools this year, up from 183,520 last school year. Public school enrollment peaked at 189,281 in 1997-98.
"It's clear that overall enrollment is about steady, but the major growth, of course, is in the charter schools," said Department of Education spokesman Greg Knudsen.
The number of charter schools increased from six to 22 this year.
While many of the 3,066 students attending charters have transferred from existing public schools, experts say they have attracted some students who had dropped out or who were being home-schooled.
Charter schools are public schools that are freed from many of the rules and regulations to allow them to experiment with their own curriculum.
The enrollment figures also show patterns of growth in some areas such as Leeward O'ahu, Knudsen said. Expanding enrollments are particularly notable at the new Kapolei schools and in the Mililani area, he said.
Hawai'i is typically known for its large schools, but Knudsen said there are indications of slight declines. Educators believe that larger schools can result in disenfranchised students who fall between the cracks.
With 2,455 students, Farrington High School continues to be the biggest school in the state.
Aside from reflecting shifting areas of growth and decline, enrollment figures also reveal a leveling off in the number of special education students.
"It appears that after years of very rapid growth, it's stabilizing, and that's probably good," Knudsen said.
Driven by a federal court order to better identify and treat children with mental disabilities, the state has seen its special education enrollment near double since 1994. This year, however, shows less than 1 percent growth over the previous year.
Reach Alice Keesing at akeesing@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8014.
