West Fork School District works to curb enrollment drop

Kirsten Keels (from right), a senior at West Fork High School, works Friday with Andrea Womack, a senior and editor, on the annual yearbook in Sarah Jones’ journalism class at the school. The district has more seniors than kindergarten students. Some of the trend is because of an aging population in West Fork, a lack of jobs within the city and a lack of housing. The high school is working to expand offerings to students, despite being a small school.
Kirsten Keels (from right), a senior at West Fork High School, works Friday with Andrea Womack, a senior and editor, on the annual yearbook in Sarah Jones’ journalism class at the school. The district has more seniors than kindergarten students. Some of the trend is because of an aging population in West Fork, a lack of jobs within the city and a lack of housing. The high school is working to expand offerings to students, despite being a small school.

WEST FORK -- Enrollment continues to slide in the School District of about 1,075 student just a little more than 10 miles south of Fayetteville.

The issue pushed Superintendent John Karnes and district leaders to take action.

By the numbers

School District2016-17 enrollment2015-16 enrollment*Percent change

Elkins School District 1,190 * 1,131 5.2 percent

Farmington School District 2,503 * 2,366 5.8 percent

Fayetteville School District 9,864 * 9,652 2.2 percent

Greenland School District 795 * 849 -6.4 percent

Lincoln School District 1,188 * 1,203 -1.2 percent

Prairie Grove School District 1,909 * 1,881 1.5 percent

Springdale School District 21,527 * 21,260 1.3 percent

West Fork School District 1,074 * 1,088 -1.3 percent

Source: Arkansas Department of Education

Karnes reached out to the superintendents in districts with shrinking student numbers across the state in an effort to defeat a legislative proposal eliminating state money to districts in that situation. He assigned a high school teacher to publicize stories on students and teachers to local media and on district Facebook and Twitter pages.

Even with the challenges of declining enrollment, Karnes and his staff also are working to provide more options for students.

"I really see this place as a diamond," Karnes said. "It is a beautiful community. There's great people here."

But much of the growth in Washington County has occurred around Fayetteville and Springdale. The southern part of the county hasn't seen that growth, he said.

"I just hope at some point we start seeing investment and people looking at and trying to help the south part of the county grow," he said.

Impact on funding

A majority of the state money for school districts is based on the number of students attending each day.

Karnes knows of a couple of years since the 2005-06 school year when the district experienced growth, but in most years the district has lost enrollment.

District enrollment rose to 1,240 in 2005-06 when the district had an influx of students transfer in the aftermath of the Greenland School Board's decision to close Winslow High School at the end of the 2004-05 school year.

Greenland annexed the former Winslow School District in July 2004.

West Fork is in the middle of those communities.

Other districts in southern Washington County that lost enrollment between 2015-16 and this school year are the Greenland and Lincoln, according to state records.

Statewide, 83 of the 262 school districts and open-enrollment charter schools received $11.3 million in declining enrollment money this school year, said Greg Rogers, assistant commissioner for Fiscal and Administrative Services for the Arkansas Department of Education.

Within just the past four years, West Fork has lost 10.3 percent of its students. The greatest one-year decline in that time was from the 2013-14 to 2014-15 school year when enrollment went from 1,197 students to 1,122.

The departure of 75 students amounted to a loss of $490,000 over the next two school years, Karnes said. Declining enrollment money from the state cut the loss half in 2015-16, but all of that money was gone this school year, he said.

State money for declining enrollment prevents districts from taking the total loss all at once.

The subsequent loss of 34 students from 2014-15 to 2015-16 school year caused another drop in money on top of what the district already lost.

Not only does the district lose its main source of money, but enrollment affects other categories of resources, including money paid for students in poverty, students in special education and for teacher training.

"It adds up," Karnes said. "You have to watch yourself, and you have to stay on top of it."

The district this year is operating on a budget of $9.7 million.

The district isn't in financial trouble, but some positions have been eliminated, he said. He's cut two bus routes within the last seven years. Training programs are narrower in focus for teachers and staff.

Some teachers are paid to work through their lunch period to avoid hiring aides to supervise students at lunch.

The district paid to upgrade lighting to save money on electric bills.

Expanding programs

Even with cost-saving measures, the district is working to improve, Karnes said. District staff spent about $100,000 on a new math curriculum.

The high school and middle school are in their first years as state-approved schools of innovation. The status gave each school the ability to create a Personalized Learning Academy for students who want greater flexibility in how they complete classwork.

"We don't want to hurt kids," Karnes said.

High School Principal John Crowder and his staff expanded the art program to include ceramics and sculpture. They are reaching out to Northwest Arkansas employers to develop internships for students. This is the second year for students to take online classes through the state's Virtual Arkansas program. Students are taking online college classes at a reduced tuition.

A handful of sophomores signed up for a new option next school year to pursue an associate's degree from college at the same time they complete requirements for a high school diploma, Crowder said.

Crowder has about 115 of the 140 students in the Personalized Learning Academy signed up to continue. The program didn't suit some students, but those who remain now understand how it works, he said. Teachers have noticed a difference in the quality of work because students have to meet a certain standard on their assignments or they have to redo them.

"We're a small school, but we're being creative to maximize opportunities for our kids," he said.

Jo Lawson, who has taught in West Fork for 13 years, is spending one class period each day promoting the School District to the West Fork community and to families in other parts of the region looking for a smaller school system, she said. Students in smaller schools are able to participate in a variety of school activities for academics and athletics. Athletics teams go beyond basketball and football, and West Fork has a golf team.

"I don't think we've publicized our programs as much as we should have," Lawson said. "We have a lot of opportunities here in the district."

Lawson and her husband, who live in Fayetteville, decided their children would attend West Fork.

"We grew up in smaller districts," Lawson said. "We wanted them to be able to be extremely involved in school activities."

Their daughter was on a state championship cheerleading team last school year and was state runner-up in golf. She graduated in 2016 and is an honors student in the Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas. A son is in seventh grade.

Reasons for decline

Karnes attributes the declining enrollment to a combination of factors. The median age has increased in West Fork and families have fewer children. The city lacks industry and jobs, with the School District being the largest employer. Even if the city were to attract residents, the city has limited rental property and homes to buy.

Karnes pays attention to the kindergarten enrollment compared with the enrollment of the senior class. In a growing school district, kindergartners often outnumber 12th-graders, but the reverse has been the four-year trend for West Fork.

Kindergarten classes have been some of the smallest classes in recent district history, with about 60 this school year, he said. The senior classes in that time period have outnumbered kindergartners. This year's senior class has about 90 students.

The trend is concerning, Karnes said.

Freshman Nathan Martin, 15, returned from a trip he took with high school students last week to Little Rock for the Future Business Leaders of America state conference. He competed in publication design and finished second in the state, qualifying for a national conference.

Martin has grown up in the small town. He said he likes the ability to work at his own pace in the new Personalized Learning Academy.

"It's a small school so you know everybody," he said.

NW News on 04/09/2017

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