Assistant Superintendent LaWanne White told the Mount Vernon City School District Board of Education on Sept. 16 that the district saw “a total enrollment of 7,389” as of Sept. 15, 2025, and that the figure includes homebound, homeschooled and out‑of‑district students. The number prompted trustees to request uniform reporting and building‑level breakdowns to make apples‑to‑apples comparisons with prior projections and outside estimates.

White said the district received 659 registration applications through Sept. 14, with 147 flagged for English language learner services, 124 identified as immigrant or new to the United States, 79 flagged for special education services (including 36 preschool CSE referrals), 88 as potential McKinney‑Vento designations, and 18 as foster care cases. She said registration staff handled about 231 address changes during the same interval. “I went on personally, onto our website as if I were a parent … and it was not. It was not,” White said, describing the online process as difficult for families and for staff helping them.

Why it matters: trustees said the district previously planned staffing, building closures and rezoning based on lower enrollment projections. Trustee John McDonough asked the district to adopt a single, consistent enrollment definition so trustees and the public compare the same categories (for example, whether charter and out‑of‑district students are counted). White confirmed the 7,389 total includes out‑of‑district and charter students, a difference McDonough said could explain much of the variance with BOCES projections.

What the district reported and proposed: White outlined operational stress points that slowed registration and produced many transfer requests. She said three K‑8 schools were closed before the fall — Parker, Leadership Academy and Honor Academy — and that the district rezoned to place most students within about 1.5 miles of a school while creating a special‑education continuum across zones. She described unusually high safety‑transfer and other transfer requests, some that did not meet board policy criteria, and said some families tried to revoke special‑education services in order to enroll children at different schools.

Transportation and fiscal context: Superintendent Doctor Strickland told trustees transportation costs drove part of the rezoning choices. “Transportation is 6.4% of our budget at almost $18,000,000,” he said, and the district operated last year from a transportation deficit that “went over budget by over $9,000,000.” Strickland said the district’s legal obligation for home‑to‑school transportation is limited (he noted the 2‑ and 3‑mile rules used in many districts) and that the district is trying to prioritize riders with greatest need.

Operational fixes White proposed included: a comprehensive review of the student registration process; reform of student placement and the transfer policy with a community‑vetted window for transfers; creating a designated face‑to‑face registration office staffed with bilingual parent liaisons; cross‑training staff (for example McKinney‑Vento knowledge beyond the liaison role); and adding staff to handle peak periods. She said three registrars and four special‑education typists had worked through Labor Day weekend to process registrations after a student information system “face lift” changed the user interface and caused confusion for staff.

Trustees’ next steps: Trustees asked the administration to deliver standardized enrollment counts (clearly labeled for whether they include preschool, charter, out‑of‑district, homebound, etc.), a building‑by‑building population and capacity report, and a timeline for proposed changes to the transfer policy. Several trustees also asked for follow‑up on the district’s residency verification practices; White said the district is working with the state monitor and is considering an investigator to verify residency where necessary.

Public‑facing context: White described an increase in McKinney‑Vento designations — the meeting record shows her explanation was given as a description of the law and of district practice. Trustee Leonard asked for clarification: White described McKinney‑Vento as a law that allows immediate school enrollment for students who disclose homelessness without requiring a lease or other documents and said the district must register such students and provide resources. White said staff had flagged about 88 incoming applications as potential McKinney‑Vento and that the district is discussing the increase with state representatives.

Ending: Trustees thanked White and asked for follow‑up data at the next business meeting, including a uniform enrollment definition, building breakdowns and an accounting of students who left the district or were discharged.