Saturday, November 07, 2009

What’s The Real Enrollment?

The West Bend School Board is going to give a tutorial on how enrollment is counted at their meeting on Monday. 

The number of students in the West Bend School District and the lower enrollment for which aid is based on will be discussed at the School Board meeting Monday night.

   Board members will hear a report from Kathy Zarling, administrator of pupil services, who will explain the discrepancy between the student count that is presented to the state Department of Public Instruction for aid and the number of students who are actually attending the schools and receiving instructional services.

   “The number we submit to the state is based on ‘full-time equivalency’ rather than the actual number of students,” Zarling said.

   A student in a half-time kindergarten program, for example, is considered .5 fulltime equivalency.

   The number of students attending the schools, or the actual head count is 7,028; the number of students reported to the DPI for state aid is 6,906.

I’m glad they are doing this.  It can be confusing.  Dr. Herdrich explained it to me a couple of years ago during the $117.3 million referendum debate. 

But something struck me as amiss…  They list the current head count as 7,028, but at the public meeting they said it was 7,146.  Here’s the chart they presented. 

image

Did the district lose 118 kids in the past couple of weeks?  Is the enrollment now only 5 more than last year and 34 less than the year before?

(6) Comments
Posted by Owen at 1622 hrs
Politics + Politics - Wisconsin

  1. Really?

    This isn’t rocket science.

    Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 07, 2009 at 2023 hrs


  2. This is the same math formula used to count stimulus jobs, its called fuzzy math.

    Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 08, 2009 at 0054 hrs


  3. I think the real solution here would be to throw some more money at it.

    Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 08, 2009 at 0943 hrs


  4. Board meeting 7 p.m., Mon., 11.9, East HS Lib

    Kathy Zarling: “Enrollment numbers are never stable – families and students move…”

    Other Monday’s items agenda:
    1. East High School improvements
    2. Borrowing resolution awarding the sale of $1.85 mil general obligation qualified, no interest, school construction promissory notes.
    3. A resolution authorizing a taxable tax and revenue anticipation promissory note for cash flow purposes for no more than $5 mil.
    4. A natural gas contract with Integrys Energy Service
    5. Summer school 2009 data Review : Small increase in K-8 remediation courses taken and a decrease in the number of high school credit recovery courses taken when compared to a three-year average. (Summer school courses “earn” the district money from the state: More courses = more money = better students.  Credit recovery courses save money: Students only make up what they need to pass the course w/o re-taking the whole course at no extra cost to the district)
    6. Recognition of the Badger Parent Group for receiving an honorable mention from the PTO Today Magazine.

    Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 08, 2009 at 0948 hrs


  5. Strangely enough, none of the numbers Ms. Zarling reviewed showed as many as 7,146 students…or even the 7,124 students they were touting during the levy debate. Closest she got was a 7,112 head count on 10/1/2009.

    Maybe it depends on the point you’re trying to make at the time?

    Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 09, 2009 at 2342 hrs


  6. What’s The Real Enrollment?
    Enrollment is tracked every third Friday of a month.  WI districts are funded on a 3-yr average in the current formula.  The WIN site reflects the 3-yr average.  The district has 500 more students than 8 yrs ago.
    A Sept. ‘09 count = 7,099, an Oct. count = 7,112, and an early Nov. count = 7,110.  Open enrollment: The district picked up 121 (-2 v ‘08-‘09); the district lost 194 (+29 v ‘08-‘09); of the latter, 47 are in virtual classes.  $6,000 in state aid follows those who leave or go.
    A 1% increase/decrease = 70 students = $420,000 in state aid.  Elementaries had endured the most growth (Barton/Fair Park) with no significant decreases at any site; this affects class sizes and student/teacher ratios.  The district wants to make this information easier to understand: Perhaps a stock ticker would be appropriate.

    State School Budgeting formula:
    Mr. Carlson reported that despite meetings between state reps and Dr. Herdrich, et al, there will be NO change to the state school budgeting formula.  Neither is the formula on the state agenda to fix or consider fixing.  Districts are on their own to fend.  The silent majority have spoken?

    East High School admin. presented school improvements and relevant data tied to those improvements.

    Borrowing resolution awarding the sale of $1.85 mil general obligation qualified, no interest, school construction promissory notes:
    The district administration pursued and was awarded a 0% loan on $1.85 mil for the Badger referendum for a savings of 3-3.5% or approx. $500,000 on that money.  The Badger referendum was projected to be $14.7 mil; it’s now projected to be $5mil less or $9.7mil projected total, on time and under budget as promised.  The district reserve fund and AA loan rating were cited as why a bank would weigh heavily in favor of such loans.  These notes are for years 2015-2019.  The referendum affects property taxes beginning in 2010-2011; rather than seeing a projected increase of $0.27 per thousand due to the referendum , it will be a $0.10-$0.15 cent increase, on time and under budget, as promised.

    Summer school: 875 students in ‘09 v. 860 in ‘08.  Money taken in: $393,000 - $350,000 expenses = $43,000 for other programs.  WB being one of the few districts that provide summer school inspires out of district parents to pay $400-$500 for their children to come to WB over summer for advancement, enrichment or makeup.  Unfortunately, the state wants the $30 flat fee eliminated and replaced by an indiv. charge per class.  This could affect the surplus by (liberally) -50-75%.

    Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 09, 2009 at 2345 hrs


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