For the first time in years, Dallas ISD鈥檚 districtwide enrollment has held steady.
A preliminary count in the second week of school showed 139,138 students, about on par with last year鈥檚 139,246. The district expects the number to rise through mid-September.
Dallas Superintendent Stephanie Elizalde shared the 鈥渦nexpectedly good鈥� enrollment numbers with school board trustees during last week鈥檚 meeting.
鈥淲e had 139,138 scholars,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hat represents an increase of nearly 2,800 students over last year on the same day and more than 1,500 students over our projection.鈥�
Elizalde said Dallas ISD had experienced 9 consecutive years of falling enrollment.
A decade ago, in the 2014-15 school year, Dallas鈥� enrollment was 160,148 鈥� about 20,000 more students than today.
The decline represents a loss of more than $100 million in a state where education funding follows the student.
Elizalde attributed this year鈥檚 enrollment partly to a dramatic increase in pre-K and kindergarten enrollment.
鈥淲hich tells me that for the first time, probably since Covid, a lot of parents feel comfortable sending their little ones to our schools again,鈥� she said.
She also praised the district鈥檚 P-TECH and early college high school programs, which have attracted and kept high school students. They offer free college credits while students are still in high school.
Some neighboring districts, including Richardson and Irving, have had to close schools because of declining enrollment. Statewide, though, numbers are up, from 5,371,581 students in 2021-22 to 5,531,230 last year as more families move to Texas.
Bill Zeeble is 四虎影院鈥檚 education reporter. Got a tip? Email Bill at bzeeble@kera.org. You can follow him on X .
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