The Weston County School Board was told enrollment is down by almost 30 students compared with this time last year, a change board member Brad said could translate to roughly a $500,000 reduction in district funding if numbers hold.

The decline, Brad said during director reports, follows an enrollment figure of about 708 students reported earlier in the month and represents an early-year shift the board said it will continue to monitor. Board members described the drop as “very concerning” for staffing and program planning because state funding follows attendance counts.

Brad told the board the figure is preliminary and that it is still early in the school year, but said the snapshot already presents a material budget risk. The board asked staff to watch enrollment trends and flagged the potential need to adjust staffing or program plans if declines continue.

The board did not take any immediate fiscal actions at the meeting. Members noted the figure may change as families enroll or leave in the coming weeks and emphasized that budget adjustments would be considered only after further confirmation of a sustained pattern.

The board scheduled continued monitoring of enrollment at upcoming meetings and asked district staff to report updated attendance figures and any near-term budget implications.