Education
BY JAMES T. NORMAN
Clear Creek ISD is seeing its enrollment stagnate, and officials are looking for ways to halt the trend. The district’s student population for several years now has sat with little to no growth, and trends suggest enrollment is now dropping, according to district data. Enrollment in the area is stagnating for a few reasons, Chief Communications Director Elaina Polsen said. Some of those include: • Not much room to build more homes in the area • Parents staying in homes after their students graduate, meaning no turnover of new families • Birth rates in general declining in Texas While the trend shows families are keeping their homes, it also means the district is running into issues increasing its revenue, Polsen said. Much of a school district’s budget in Texas is based on how many students are in the district. Combined with the state’s student allotment remaining the same since 2019, if a school district isn’t gaining students, it makes money tighter, Polsen said. CCISD in that regard had a $17.4 million shortfall in its fiscal year 2023-24 budget before voters approved a voter-approval tax rate election in November. “If you’re not increasing your student enrollment, you’re not increasing your budget,” Polsen said. CCISD working to increase enrollment
The approach
responding to it,” Hughes said. The second program will allow certain families who qualify to attend CCISD even if they live outside the district. The hope is the program will accommodate many families who in the past have expressed interest in attending the district, Polsen said. “We have talked about this program in many different forums, and many people are excited about it,” Polsen said.
To combat the trend, CCISD officials are planning to use two programs, Polsen said. The first part of the plan is expanding the tuition-based pre-K program, which has previously been capped, Assistant Superintendent of Elemen- tary Education Holly Hughes said. That cap is being removed, and officials will attempt to accommodate everyone who applies, Hughes said. “We’re trying to get ahead of the need rather than
CCISD schools at capacity
In its new enrollment program, CCISD has eight schools that families will not be eligible to apply for due to them being at capacity, officials said.
Elementary schools
Intermediate schools
High schools
Alternative schools
Schools at capacity
Brookwood Elementary
Seabrook Intermediate
45
ARMAND BAYOU NATURE CENTER
REPSDORPH RD.
Seabrook
2351
Landolt Elementary
CLEAR LAKE
Westbrook Intermediate
146
GALVESTON BAY
Nassau Bay
BAYBROOK MALL DR.
518
League City Intermediate
528
96
SOUTH SHORE BLVD.
Webster
Brookside Intermediate
Goforth Elementary
WALKER ST.
646
45
Campbell Elementary
LANDING BLVD.
League City
517
3
N
SOURCE: CLEAR CREEK ISD/COMMUNITY IMPACT
517
The takeaway
Clear Creek ISD enrollment
said. The cap for the program could also depend on staffing needs. Applications for both programs close Feb. 1, Pol- sen said. The deadline will be a hard one as officials will need to begin working toward accommodating all the families who are interested. “People should apply early,” Hughes said.
CCISD officials said they hope the new enrollment program will bring in about 300 new students, which would help the district maintain where its student population was in the 2022-23 school year, according to district data. While there is room to continue to expand, offi- cials don’t want to overburden the schools, Polsen
*PROJECTED
40,800 41,000 40,600 40,400 0
SOURCES: CLEAR CREEK ISD, TEXAS EDUCATION AGENCY/COMMUNITY IMPACT
18
COMMUNITYIMPACT.COM
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