CONTINUED FROM 1
2022 EDUCATION EDITION
While school districts in other parts of Central and South Texas are experiencing drops in student enrollment, NBISD and CISD are seeing continued growth. CONSTANT GROWTH
growth that year, though at a slower rate than recent year-over-year increases. That trend is not isolated to the past year alone. In the past decade, Texas overall grew student enroll- ment by 8.6% from 2011-12 school year to the 2021-22 school year. In NBISD, enrollment grew by 21.27% in that same period and in CISD, that growth in the stu- dent population was 57.75%. That growth is much in line with the growth of the city overall. From 2010-20, New Braunfels grew by 56.51%, from 57,740 residents to 90,370, according to U.S. census data. “Under 18 [years old] was our highest growth bracket—that was more than ve times the regional average,” said Jonathan Packer, president and CEO of the Greater New Braunfels Chamber of Commerce at a recent presentation to the New Braunfels City Council on ndings in the chamber’s 2023-27 Eco- nomic Development Strategic Plan. “That’s roughly an elementary school per year. So you see the chal- lenges school districts are facing. Adding an elemen- tary school every year is a major source of that.” Where is the growth? Growth patterns vary within New Braunfels, and that is something that serves as a target for where the districts will prioritize new schools and facilities. Recently in NBISD, the district scrapped a plan to combine Carl Schurz Elementary and Seele Elemen- tary schools in one location and close the current campuses due in part to their age. The campuses were built in 1924 and 1950, respectively. This action would have freed up funding from the 2018 bond to build a new elementary school where growth is occurring most rapidly, NBISD Superinten- dent Cade Smith said. However, changes in demo- graphic projections on where that growth will take place in the city shifted since that 2018 bond passed. Smith said moving that school to where more growth is forecast in the city, as well as a potential new elementary on the opposite side of town, will help where the district is seeing its most growth in terms of new subdivisions on the outskirts of the dis- trict—speci cally along Klein Road and Zipp Road in the Guadalupe County side of the district and in the western area around the Veramendi subdivision. “All of that growth and expansion at the elementary level eventually funnels up to our secondary schools. Both middle schools are projected to be over capacity by the 2026 school year, and both high schools near or over capacity within the decade,” Smith said. In CISD—a district that encompasses all of the
rest of Comal County outside the NBISD boundaries and dips slightly into neighboring counties—growth is occurring rapidly in the center of the county o Hwy. 281 and FM 1863 along with the northern part of New Braunfels in Comal County. Growth is also occurring in Guadalupe County that includes subdivisions o Hwy. 46 and near and around the Creekside shopping center, said Steve Stanford, assistant superintendent of communications and organizational alignment for CISD. The New Braunfels parts of the district are seeing the biggest impact on growth. “Elementary No. 19 has been built o [Hwy.] 46 in between Freiheit [Elementary] and Clear Spring Elementary,” Stanford said. “The big story really for us on the New Braunfels side of the district is the Mayfair development going up on I-35. That’s 6,000 homes. We’ve already got land for a couple elemen- tary, middle school and a high school up there that we’re working on securing.” Forecasting enrollment increases Even with the possibility of an economic recession on the horizon, both districts are expecting to see con- tinued growth. The demographic report from Zonda Education released last year forecasts the district will reach 13,000 students by the 2030-31 school year, or more than a 34% increase over current enrollment. In CISD, growth projections forecast more than 40,000 students by the 2029-30 school year, or a more than 47% increase over current enrollment. “So that we can stay on top of the growth, we are in the process of creating a Long Range Facilities Planning Committee,” Smith said. “This committee will be charged with developing a 10-year drafted plan of district facilities that can accommodate the fast growth we are seeing. They will look at updated demographer’s projections, nances and other data sources.” Smith added that community surveys will be on the horizon to ask the public for feedback on build- ings and other items. “Historically, if you go back to the 2008 recession, when there was a housing decline, we still experi- enced growth in Comal ISD,” Stanford said. “What our demographer has told us is if there’s any slow- down in the housing market, it means that we’ll grow 2%-3% a year versus 5%-6% a year.”
COMAL ISD
30,000
25,000
20,000
57.75% INCREASE
15,000
0
NEW BRAUNFELS ISD
10,000
9,000
8,000
21.27% INCREASE
7,000
0
For more information, visit communityimpact.com .
STUDENT BODY FORECAST The most recent demographic projections show both NBISD and CISD growing over the next decade.
So that we can stay on top of the growth, we are in the process of creating a Long Range Facilities Planning Committee. This committee will be charged with developing a 10-year drafted plan of district facilities that can accommodate the fast growth we are seeing." Cade Smith, superintendent of NBISD
POTENTIAL NEW CAMPUSES Planning for future bond elections is still underway in both districts, but some future campuses are already in the works.
COMAL ISD
NEW BRAUNFELS ISD
COMAL ISD
NEW BRAUNFELS ISD
Elementary School No. 20 (near Danville Middle School) Middle School No. 8 (near Hwy. 281 and FM 1863) Proposed Hill Country College Preparatory High School
Legend Pond subdivision
+32.47%
+49.76%
elementary school Second Veramendi- area elementary school Third middle school
13,435
43,605
10,142
29,116
2022-23
2031-32
2022-23
2031-32
SOURCES COMAL ISD, NEW BRAUNFELS ISD, ZONDA EDUCATION COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
SOURCES: COMAL ISD, NEW BRAUNFELS ISD COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
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NEW BRAUNFELS EDITION • AUGUST 2022
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