Enrollment in the Brookings and Sioux Valley school districts has changed this year. Though Brookings saw its student numbers rise significantly , Sioux Va l l e y ' s e n ro l l m e n t went down by a dozen students.

T h a t means a change in the amount of money allocated to each school on a per-student basis, and a boost in funding for Brookings.

For the Volga schools, the drop in student numbers means a $57,600 budget shortfall , based on state funding of approximately $4,800 per student .

Superintendent Dean Johnson said the district will make it through harder times using funding from other sources, but a continued drop in student enrollment could result in staffing cutbacks next year. Brookings at 2,808

According to Superintendent Roger DeGroot, the Brookings schools have good news to report: the 2009 enrollment is 2,808 students - up 64 from last year.

DeGroot said the number was close to what planners figured for growth. In this year's budget, he said a growth of 40 students was estimated.

At $4,800 per student, the district will receive $307,000 from state funding. The district had anticipated receiving only about two-thirds of that amount. "It's a nice increase for the district," DeGroot added.

Though an increase in students means more state funding and growth for the district, it also means that the Brookings School District could have space issues in the future when it comes to having the necessary room it needs for its students. A higher student head count also requires additional teachers.

Enrollment at Brookings' alternative high school, SElect High, is down, DeGroot said, and staff is looking at updating technology and equipment in the school to better serve the students there.

According to SElect Coordinator Brad Nupen, enrollment is down dramatically from the summer, but it's a typical change. He said there is a regular influx of students attending the school after graduation and throughout the summer months.

Nupen says enrollment during the summer was 38 students. At the beginning of the school year, about 14 students were enrolled.

A change for SElect and schools statewide could result in slightly higher student numbers now and in the future. The 2009 South Dakota Legislature passed a compulsory attendance law that requires students to remain in school until age 18 or graduation; previously , school attendance was required only to age 16. Sioux Valley loses 12

A look at enrollment in the Sioux Valley School District showed board members that student numbers are down 12 from last year, Johnson said.

The official enrollment for this year is 576. It was 588 last year due to a "smaller than anticipated" kindergarten class, the superintendent added. Johnson said the district has tax opt-out dollars to help it through periods with a downturn, such as this.

He said that if enrollment c o n t i n u e s to dec re a s e , there is a possibility the board will have to look at m a k i n g staff reductions .

T h e school board will look at preliminary enrollment figures for the 2010-2011 school year at its February meeting, then make necessary adjustments.

Johnson said that if reductions have to be made because the enrollment dropped in the elementary school, it's likely the board would make adjustments to the elementary staff numbers.

Contact Amanda Palluck at apalluck @brookingsregister.com.

For the complete article see the 09-17-2009 issue.

Click here to purchase an electronic version of the 09-17-2009 paper.