Enrollment continues to decline at area rural schools

More than half of the 290 school districts in Indiana enroll less than 2,000 students.

Nearly three quarters of those schools have lost students in the last decade, and it's a trend that looks to continue in the years to come.

Seven of the nine school districts in the Tribune coverage area have less than 2,000 students. All seven reported a drop in enrollment year over year.

Less students mean less state funding, less money to pay teachers and in growing fashion, less teachers at these schools.

Multiple school administrators told the Tribune declining enrollments are leading to teaching positions not being filled when openings arise.

Attrition and housing

Taylor Community Schools is down 40 students from last fall.

"We knew it was coming, I did project lower," said Renae Adams, the school's treasurer.

As a result, a teacher who left at fall break was not replaced.

That person was a librarian. An English teacher was moved over to cover this position, though some library classes were cut. Students also had to be moved around.

An elementary teacher and high school social studies teacher weren't replaced at Tipton Community School Corporation for the same reason.

The school district is down 39 students from last year. Superintendent Ryan Glaze said incoming kindergarten classes are smaller than graduating classes, a common theme across the area.

And it's not a school choice problem.

"We need housing like everybody does," Glaze said. "It's not about school choice, it's really about places not having affordable housing."

Arbor Homes, an Indianapolis-based builder that has a growing footprint in Kokomo, pulled out of a development plan that would have seen more than 300 homes built on Tipton's west side in 2022. This was due to skyrocketing costs to build homes.

Maconaquah Superintendent Craig Jernagan told the Tribune last year housing is an issue in his school district as well. The rural Miami County school corporation is down another 33 students this year.

"It's the same thing as about 70% of rural districts," Jernagan said. "The trend has been they're going to keep declining in enrollment. That's a state trend, not just a Miami County trend."

The superintendent said Maconaquah lost multiple positions through attrition last year. Those who resign or retire are not being replaced, except when necessary.

Fewer students, less money

Peru Community Schools is down 15 students from last fall. While Superintendent Trent McCormick calls that "holding steady," the school district is feeling the squeeze of less students.

Staff has been lost, partly due to pandemic funding running out, which funded some of those positions.

Less funding is the biggest consequence of declining enrollment. Schools receive a certain amount of state funding for every student enrolled. This funding pays teachers. Hence, less students means less funding to pay those who teach them.

This leads to positions not being filled, especially when schools must maintain competitive salaries for those teachers who are still there.

As McCormick put it, there's only two ways to get additional revenue: more students or a referendum.

Referendums face an uphill battle in Indiana due to the way they're worded on the ballot and rising property taxes. Kokomo School Corporation's attempt at a referendum dedicated to increasing teacher salaries lost by a two-to-one margin.

Many school administrators hesitate to entertain raising taxes.

Glaze said there could come a time when programs are cut at Tipton schools.

There is concern among many about incoming Gov. Mike Braun. While the United States senator has called for increased teacher pay, he's also a proponent of universal school choice, which would divert more school funding to private and charter schools.

Other area trends

The 2,000-student threshold is the minimum that's needed for a school corporation to support student performance, according to multiple studies.

A Ball State University study argued increasing enrollment can lead to better test scores.

One way to do so would be school consolidation, which gets floated by state Republicans from time to time.

It's a suggestion that's sure to be met with resistance from small schools which are often tied to their town's identity. There's also plenty of logistical questions including transportation and the costs associated with transporting kids longer distances, school board composition and what happens to school buildings.

Then there's Eastern Howard School Corporation.

Enrollment came in at 1,590, but it could be much higher.

Not because of hypothetical consolidation, but because of the number of families who want to send their kids to the school in Greentown.

More than 40% of Eastern's student population is from out of district. There were more than 200 transfer requests last school year.

"If we had another wing, we could add," said Superintendent Keith Richie.

Western School Corporation was the only school in the Tribune's coverage area to report an increase in enrollment (20 students), though it's not expected to continue due to the difference between graduating and incoming kindergarten classes.

"If the trend stays, we're going to see a small increase, then we're going to start seeing a decrease," said Superintendent Mark DuBois.

The Indiana Capital Chronicle contributed to this report.