SALT LAKE CITY — Utah school enrollment has dropped 1.9% over the past year, but the picture looks different depending on where you look and what type of school you consider.
Traditional school district enrollment fell 2.7% statewide, while charter school enrollment grew 4.1% over the same period.
Both kinds of schools are taxpayer-funded.
The districts with the largest student losses by number are not all equal in impact. Salt Lake City School District lost 1,300 students, the sixth most in the state and a 6.9% decline. Meanwhile, Granite School District lost 3,800 students, the most of any district, but a smaller percentage at 6.6%.
Three districts did see growth, though none dramatically.
Mid-sized Juab District added 149 students over two years, while North Sanpete District gained 12 students, and Wayne County School District added 4 students over the same two-year stretch.
Timpanogos School District considers potential school closures:
The trend comes even as Utah remains the youngest state in the country with the highest birth rate relative to other states — but compared to its own recent history, fewer students are enrolling in traditional public schools.
A major shift may be on the horizon.
Alpine School District, the largest in Utah, is splitting into three separate districts. The smallest of the three will be Timpanogos School District, and before it takes over its schools, the new district is studying boundaries to determine whether any schools need to close.
The new Lake Mountain School District faces the opposite challenge. A new elementary school, Juniper Basin, is already in its first year and was expecting more than 800 students.
