Slight enrollment decline seen in Brookings School District

BROOKINGS Its official, the Brookings School District enrollment numbers fell by just under 80 students this year.

At last weeks school board meeting, Brookings Superintendent Summer Schultz shared the news about the states official enrollment numbers, which were released in late September.

The average weekly attendance at the districts three elementary schools, which include junior kindergarten through third grades, is 1,069.54, which is down 81.82 students from last years tally.

The three schools average attendance numbers are:

Hillcrest, 271.5 down 30.85 from last year

Dakota Prairie, 445.12 down 51.89 from last year

Medary 353.17 up 0.92

Camelot Intermediate School had an increase in average attendance numbers at 531.61, up 8.28 from the 2024 number.

The enrollment numbers at the middle school and high school were steady, with the Mickelson Middle School averaging 780.65 students per weekly count versus 781.7 for last year, a decline of 1.05.

Brookings High Schools weekly enrollment count stands at 976.2, down just 3 from last years 979.2 count.

Schultz said the counts in Brookings are in line with a statewide trend of lower enrollments in schools, adding that 20 of the largest 26 schools in the state had enrollment declines and those 26 schools have a net attendance of minus 800.

Schultz said the statewide downturn was not unexpected and can be attributed to the lower birth rates across the state.

There is a misconception that during COVID that birth rates were going to go up and the reality is that if you look at the last three years for South Dakota, they have been the three lowest years of that crude birth rate, which is birth rates per thousand.

Schultz said that kindergarten registration has been down across the state.

Our kindergarten registration numbers did point to being lower, but we typically have more over the summer that didnt come this year.

Schultz said the numbers were not unexpected.

If you look at what we estimated two years ago for this year to be were right there.

Board President Debra DeBates said, I think the good thing is that weve been conservative in terms of how weve projected enrollment, so that we dont get ourselves in a budget crunch . so thats a positive.

Other area schools

The Brookings Register contacted other school districts in its coverage area about there enrollment numbers:

The Oldham-Ramona-Rutland District saw a big decline in enrollment. The fall 2024 enrollment was 272 and the 2025 enrollment is 194.

Losing 78 students will definitely have a profound effect on how we develop a budget for the 26-27 school year, ORR Superintendent Dawn Hoeke said.

The Elkton-Lake Benton district was steady with 425 students enrolled for both last year and this year, including pre-kindergarten.

Its my first year here Elkton, so I dont have a ton of insight into the ebb and flow in numbers the past few years. Were higher than the numbers prior to 2020, Superintended Kory Foss said.

Sioux Valley Superintendent Laura Schuster reported that her district has a fall enrollment number of 752, up from last years count of 743.8.

Superintendent Brian Sampson said Arlingtons fall enrollment stands at 270, just seven less than last year.

Flandreau Superintendent Quinton Cermak said his districts unofficial enrollment is a 693 down five from last years number, but up five from the number the administration projected for this school year

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