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North Putnam enrollment trends offer reasons for optimism
ROACHDALE — School leaders at North Putnam have focused on the school corporation attracting and retaining students. There may be a silver lining within its declining enrollment.
The North Putnam School Board heard such a forecast from Independent consultant Susan Brudvig during its regular meeting last Thursday evening.
Brudvig first set the stage with the trend being that student enrollment in Putnam County has gone down overall. At North Putnam, enrollment in the 2010-11 school year was 1,706 and down to 1,260 for 2020-21. For comparison, Greencastle Schools has gone from 1,987 to 1,693, while South Putnam Schools has gone from 1,234 to 1,054.
Brudvig provided that this pattern has not been unusual in more rural places. In essence, lower enrollment is the result of the number of children in the county declining in the past two decades, along with the number residing in the school district.
However, the focus was on the trends of retention (or acquisition) and replacement, in which graduating classes are larger than incoming ones and more have been transferring out. The silver lining with North Putnam’s future may be that the number will eventually stabilize.
“There’s always going to be kiddos here,” Brudvig said. Though with this being sure, she stipulated that elementary school gains give an indication of the school district’s growth. At the same time, births to county residents stand at 368 in 2019, down from 430 in 1999.
The “wild card” in terms of forecasting growth at North Putnam will still be 2020 when it comes to the effects of COVID-19. This is partly because census data will not be available until the end of this year. Brudvig provided, though, that births have “tanked” due to people more or less putting plans on hold.
Brudvig’s forecast for North Putnam has its enrollment declining in the next decade, but with the number nonetheless remaining above 1,200 students. The forecast also sees enrollment in elementary grades will increase in the next five years.
“I feel more hopeful seeing all of this,” board member Amber Greene commented.
Brudvig also touched on a school district having a sense of community, in that “those things do matter in uncertain times.”
In other business:
• The board approved a meeting policy stipulating that board members may be present virtually and vote if there is a declared emergency. If there is not, however, they may be present but not vote or count toward a quorum.
• The board approved a library media specialist as a contract employee during the school year. The employee will work for 30 days throughout the school corporation with a salary not to exceed $485 per day worked. Superintendent Nicole Allee said the specialist would help students with learning loss.
• The board approved Brenda Kerns to represent the school corporation on the Roachdale Library Board.
• The board approved a bid for $145,085 to purchase two white activity buses. One of them will have a wheelchair lift.
• The board approved an updated back-to-school plan outlining expectations with regard to contact tracing and possible exposure to COVID-19.
Wearing masks will generally be optional inside school buildings but required on school buses. Students who are vaccinated will not have to quarantine should they come into contact with a positive individual. Those who are unvaccinated and return to school on Day 11 will have to wear a mask and be isolated until their quarantine is up. However, if they return and do not show symptoms or have a negative test (a rapid test would count), they might participate in activities apart from athletics.
The board also approved the following personnel report:
• New hires: Jessica Tarr - NPMS assistant volleyball coach; Damean Burnett - summer laborer; Nichole Lafevers - Roachdale Elementary instructional assistant; Nathan Bryan - NPHS assistant football coach; Valerie Lenihan and Julia Nesbitt - Jump Start summer school teachers; and Sara Greene - NPMS college and career education teacher;
• Resignations: Chase Hiland - NPMS teacher (effective July 9); Lou Ann Pell - Bainbridge Elementary teacher (effective July 12); Hilary Vukovits - Roachdale Elementary teacher (effective July 13); and Kathy Sykes - NPHS teacher (effective July 15).
Ron Spencer was the only board member absent at the meeting. Joining the board, Allee and Tippin were Corporation Treasurer Tanya Pearson, Corporation Attorney Darren Chadd and Administrative Assistant April Lambermont.
The next regular meeting of the North Putnam School Board is scheduled for Thursday, Aug. 19 at 7 p.m. in the large group instruction room at North Putnam High School.