PSS enrollment down by nearly 400

Official numbers show enrollment for the Public School System is down 3 percent this year compared to last year.

Numbers released by PSS show 10,913 students are enrolled in the elementary and secondary schools, as well as the Early Intervention Program, Headstart and the Advance Development Institute. This is a 3.42 percent decrease from last year’s enrollment total of 11,299.

The peak number for enrollment during the last five years was in 2005-2006, when 11,718 students were enrolled.

Education Commissioner Rita Sablan said she did not have data on why there was a decrease, but she suspects it has to do with families moving off island.

At a regularly scheduled Board of Regents meeting yesterday, board member Herman Guerrero asked if the numbers declined because students dropped out of the school system.

Federal Programs officer Tim Thornburgh said that, according to data from the U.S. Department of Education, PSS has 35 to 40 students, or 4.5 percent, of students dropping out each year. The U.S. average is 4.8 percent, he added.

“It just shows that it’s mobility,” Thornburgh said.

Of the 10,913 students enrolled this year, 5,477 are in elementary, 4,922 are in secondary, 21 are in ADI, 61 are in Early Intervention Service, and 462 are in Headstart.

According to the data, all of the elementary schools in the Public School System saw a decrease in enrollment, with San Vicente Elementary seeing the largest decrease. Last year, 766 students were enrolled and this year 684 are enrolled, an 11-percent decrease.

Of the nine secondary schools, four schools—Hopwood Jr. High, Tinian Jr. High, Marianas High and Kagman High—saw an increase in enrollment. Four schools—Chacha Jr. High, Rota Jr. High, Saipan Southern High and Tinian High—saw a decrease, while Rota High School remained the same.

The number of students identifying themselves as Chamorro or Carolinian also decreased. Chamorros saw an 8-percent decrease, while Carolinians decreased by 7 percent. The majority of students are once again U.S. citizens—92 percent identify themselves as citizens of the United States.

There are 510 classroom teachers this year, four fewer than last year. Also, there are 12 fewer teacher aids.

As of Oct. 1, 65.7 percent of teachers were fully compliant with PRAXIS I and II, according to the data.