School enrollment figures for school districts across the state were updated recently for the 2018-2019 school year (last year) and the Whitehall School District’s total enrollment fell to 699 students. This is the lowest number since I have tracked this and the first time the number has fallen below 700.
The complete enrollment figures for 2018-2019 school year can be found here.
I have been tracking and reporting on the enrollment for a number of years. To put this number of 699 students into historical context I have updated my yearly enrollment chart below:
| School Year | 04-05 | 05-06 | 06-07 | 07-08 | 08-09 | 09-10 | 10-11 | 11-12 | 12-13 |
| Students | 885 | 860 | 858 | 845 | 815 | 779 | 753 | 742 | 755 |
| School Year | 13-14 | 14-15 | 15-16 | 16-17 | 17-18 | 18-19 | |||
| Students | 757 | 736 | 736 | 758 | 708 | 699 |
The district has now reached the lowest enrollment since I have been tracking this.
During this time, local property taxes have increased every year. State aid has also increased every year. Sadly, the Board of Education has not passed on any savings from this plummeting enrollment to the local taxpayers, in spite of increased state aid during the same time period.
Instead of managing the decline in enrollment to help the taxpayer, we are in this perpetual cycle where enrollment falls and taxes go up.
