Dutchess County school districts: Student population in decline

HARLEM VALLEY — The Dutchess County Board of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES) published a report this year on student enrollment. The study shows a decline in student populations county-wide during a five-year span.

Pine Plains Central School District Superintendent of Schools Martin Handler brought up concerns about declining student enrollment in Pine Plains and other nearby districts during the Pine Plains Board of Education (BOE) meeting on Wednesday, March 9.

The BOCES report shows the comparison of student enrollment from the 2010-11 school year through the 2014-15 school year.

The Pine Plains Central School District boasted a total of 1,108 students enrolled in the 2010-11 academic year. The student population declined to a low of 980 students in 2014-15, which was an 11.55 percent decrease.

“All school districts have experienced declining enrollment for the past five years,” Handler said. “However, Pine Plains has had a sharper decline.”

Handler attributed the decline to the lack of jobs and affordable housing in the area for young families.

North East (Webutuck) Central School District Superintendent of Schools Ray Castellani expressed a similar concern.

“You’re seeing a drop [in student enrollment] across all New York state,” Castellani said, adding that even businesses are leaving the state because taxes are too high — making New York an expensive state in which to live.

“The decrease in population becomes a major issue to school districts because it’s difficult to maintain programs,” Castellani added.

And challenging it is, as state aid is distributed on a student ratio basis, according to Castellani. In addition, the decline of local population also means there are fewer taxpayers to fund programs.

In the 2010-11 school year, Webutuck had 808 students enrolled, and it experienced a decline of 43 students in the span of five years. That’s a decrease of 5.32 percent. Webutuck had a student population of 765 in the 2014-15 school year, according to the study.

Officials at the Millbrook Central School District, also in the Harlem Valley, expressed concern about the issue.

“School enrollment is declining below state average,” Millbrook Superintendent of Schools Phillip D’Angelo said, adding that the rate of decline is about 2 percent per year.

The Millbrook district had a student population of 1,180 in the 2010-11 school year, which declined to 1,004 in the 2014-15 school year. That’s a decrease of 14.92 percent.

These declines have encouraged school districts in the area to join forces with one another to seek ways in which they can offer more programs to its students while not exceeding their budgets. The idea is similar to the county’s shared services program enjoyed by many municipalities in the region, which allows towns and villages to  save money by purchasing equipment jointly. 

“In order to provide quality instruction for all students, we’re adjusting our master schedule and looking to share programs with neighboring school districts,” D’Angelo said.

Many schools share programs to avoid budgetary increases. Webutuck, for example, has partnered up with the Millbrook and Dover school districts to offer athletic programs to its students and keep costs affordable for the school, Castellani said.

According to the Webutuck superintendent, one way to address this issue is to improve educational programs as much as possible.

“Education needs to thrive in  order to attract people to the school district,” Castellani said. “As the population starts to grow, businesses are attracted to the area.”

This, he said, helps create a sustainable solution to the problem of declining student enrollment.