Officials say number of students down
By Phyllis Moore
Published in News on August 26, 2014 1:46 PM
Officials with Wayne County Public Schools reported 108 fewer students enrolled on the first day of classes Monday than the same time last year, and announced that one school opening had been delayed until later this week.
The district's two non-traditional schools, Wayne Early/Middle College High School and Wayne School of Engineering, resumed classes earlier this month.
Students and staff at 28 of the public schools started classes Monday. The first day of classes at Edgewood Community Developmental School is expected to be Wednesday. The decision was made to allow for completion of renovations at the specialized school, said Ken Derksen, director of communication services, on Monday.
"Over the summer, the school began undergoing several renovations," he said. "Projects included updates and modernizations across the school and the installation of new mobile units. The school also updated its pre-K classrooms to maintain compliance with state pre-K licensure requirements and state environmental health childcare guidelines."
Each year, the district closely monitors enrollment numbers for the first 10 days of classes. The state uses the tally from the 10th day to determine classroom needs and make adjustments of teacher assignments.
Derksen said the official enrollment numbers as of Monday afternoon showed a headcount of 17,756 students. On the first day last year, enrollment was 17,864 for all 31 schools.
Historically, the district numbers have reached 19,000-plus, with the 2013-14 enrollment topping 19,355. A similar trend is expected this year, Derksen said.
Schools showing the most growth comparatively for first-day numbers included Brogden Primary, which had 738 students last year and 785 on Monday; Charles B. Aycock High School, climbing from 1,108 to 1,214; Eastern Wayne High, 945 to 983; Goldsboro High, increased from 405 to 447; and Southern Wayne, from 921 to 1,010.
Declines were seen at several schools, including Dillard Middle, which had 535 students on the first day in 2013 and 448 this year; Eastern Wayne Elementary, 721 to 706; Grantham, which had 855 last year and 823 on Monday; Greenwood Middle, from 511 to 438; Norwayne Middle, 971 to 906; Rosewood Elementary, 672 to 645; and Spring Creek High, which went from 1,005 last year to 949.