FALLBROOK: Schools still losing students, but at a slower pace

Downward trend eases up

By TOM PFINGSTEN - Staff Writer | Tuesday, August 26, 2008 4:13 PM PDT ∞

FALLBROOK ---- Officials in the Fallbrook Union Elementary School District said on the second day of school Tuesday that enrollment seems to have leveled off this year after several years of steep decline.

Assistant superintendent Jim Whitlock said the number of students who attended school Monday was 5,466, down 19 from the 5,485 students officially enrolled last year.

Losing 19 students may not be a cause for celebration, but it's a lot better than the 257 empty seats that administrators were facing at the beginning of the 2007-08 school year.

School districts are funded by the government based on the number of students who attend school every day. The equation is known as "Average Daily Attendance," and the district receives $5,529 per student.

Whitlock said counting students during the first week of school is more of an art than a science, but added that the numbers so far look encouraging.

"I've been saying for a while that I hope we're seeing the light at the end of the tunnel," he said. "I'm cautiously optimistic."

Enrollment peaked in the 2003-04 school year, when 6,092 students were enrolled in the district ---- 626 more pupils than attended school Monday.

While Monday's numbers still represented a year-over-year decline, the loss was much gentler than last year, and administrators attributed it to a new independent study program and higher enrollment at the district's two Camp Pendleton schools.

"We are seeing good growth at our two base schools, and hopefully the increased numbers there will make up for any declines we might experience in town," said Whitlock. "It's always a little dodgy in this first week of school."

Director of educational services Brian Jacobs said 115 students have enrolled in the new independent study course ---- known as a "core program."

"That program is where students are coming to school and meeting with their teacher three days a week, and then on the additional two days, they're doing their independent study work ... and their parents monitor that work," Jacobs explained.

The program operates at La Paloma Elementary School. Jacobs said the majority of the students in the program are new to the district.

He said less than 5 percent were enrolled elsewhere and transferred into the new program, which would not affect the district's enrollment figures. New students are key to boosting enrollment, officials said.

In related news, this is the first week of classes after the school board decided earlier this year to cancel a shuttle bus service that transported students between campuses.

Some parents decried the move, but officials said it was necessary to balance the budget.

While school-related traffic was hectic on Monday and Tuesday, Whitlock said it was hard to tell how much of that was a result of cancelling the shuttle system and how much was just because this is the first week of classes.

"Interestingly, we didn't see any last-minute surprises," he said. "It seems like parents were prepared for the lack of shuttle service, and had made arrangements. I have not heard of any surprises, of people showing up for a shuttle that wasn't there."

Contact staff writer Tom Pfingsten at (760) 740-3516 or tpfingsten@nctimes.com.