BY BROOKE SJOBERG
Driving decisions
What it means
Smaller class sizes: Some parents prefer students have more one-on-one attention.
Roberton said the Christian school, which has an enrollment of about 80 students, will expand to oer two classrooms per grade level. “Enrollment is open, but the point is to still stay small and intentional with our families,” Roberton said. Bob Templeton, a demographer with Tem- pleton Demographics—also known as Zonda Education—said in compiling projections, he has observed a sharp increase in homeschooling, largely due to convenience. “The charter expansion is denitely at play,” Templeton said. “But we saw a surge of homes- chooling that is a little harder to quantify.”
Families are enrolling their children in charter and private schools for a variety of reasons. Sarah Gardner, director of community engage- ment for Meridian World School, said the charter school oers a smaller environment for students to enjoy many of the same opportunities they would have at a traditional public school, with the added benet of cross-grade-level interaction. Georgetown Christian Academy Principal Je Roberton said smaller class sizes are a primary ben- et of private schools. For families who want to see their faith centralized in their children’s upbringing, a religious school can also integrate these aspects into their educational journey, he said.
Special programming: Some parents chose schools with career development programs.
Religious a liation: Some parents wanted to keep a religious aspect to education.
“Enrollment is open, but the point is to still stay small and intentional with our families.”
JEFF ROBERTON, GEORGETOWN CHRISTIAN ACADEMY PRINCIPAL
Going forward
Financial impact These are rough estimates of basic allotment funding school districts would have received from the state if all students attended 100% of the time in 2022-23.
“Charter schools are very good at selling themselves,” Padavil said. Padavil, who was hired as the district’s superintendent in September, said GISD’s focus in working to attract students moving to the area will be ensuring the community is aware of the opportunities it provides. For example, through the district’s Future Ready Learning Center set to open in August, students will have expanded opportunities for career and technical education. “I really believe the experiences kids have in public school help them learn at high levels and provide diverse opportunities,” he said. “It also helps them relate to every di£erent child in our community.”
On a year-to-year basis, enrollment can impact many decisions made by school leaders, GISD Chief Financial Ocer Jennifer Hanna said. While projections show the district would have received $8.7 million in estimated basic allotment funding for the 1,546 students who transferred out of the district in the 2022-23 school year, Padavil said that funding would be somewhat o£set by the cost of additional sta£ and resources for those students. However, it could have helped to shrink the $9.9 million budget shortfall for that year. As the district works to retain students and remain a primary choice for new families moving to the area, Padavil said one challenge of competing with charter schools is marketing.
Basic allotment funding**
District
Net transfers*
Georgetown ISD 1,415
$8,716,400
Hutto ISD
735
$4,527,600
P¬ugerville ISD 5,374
$29,777,440
Round Rock ISD 5,201
$32,038,160
*NET TRANSFERS = STUDENTS TRANSFERRING OUT « STUDENTS TRANSFERRING IN **THESE AMOUNTS ARE SOLELY BASED ON THE BASIC ALLOTMENT PER STUDENT IN STATE FUNDING, WHICH HAS REMAINED $6,160 PER STUDENT SINCE 2019.
SOURCES: GEORGETOWN ISD, HUTTO ISD, PFLUGERVILLE ISD, ROUND ROCK ISD, TEXAS EDUCATION AGENCY COMMUNITY IMPACT
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GEORGETOWN EDITION
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