Dr. Hall presented a preliminary enrollment report at the Aug. 21 meeting of the South Madison Community Board of School Trustees, saying the district is up about 54 students over the previous year but that the Oct. 1 official count will determine state funding.

The report matters because state aid is calculated from the official average daily membership (ADM) and because enrollment changes affect staffing, classroom assignments and facility capacity. Dr. Hall said the report was prepared from PowerSchool and other district demographic projections but is “already somewhat inaccurate because I did it a day day ago, and then we had kids coming in.”

Dr. Hall’s figures showed East Elementary unchanged from last year, Maple Ridge up 17 students and Pendleton Elementary up 41 students — a net elementary increase of about 50 students compared with the prior year. The district overall, Dr. Hall said, was “up about 54 kids over last year.”

He told trustees the middle school was down 33 students compared with last year and that high‑school enrollment may still change as staff track students who have not yet shown up. Dr. Hall cautioned that the report is preliminary and will likely change after Labor Day and the official count on Oct. 1.

Board members asked no substantive follow‑up beyond clarifying that the October count determines final state funding and that some fluctuations are common at particular grade bands. Dr. Hall said the district has room at the elementary level to absorb growth and that he will provide updated counts after the official count date.

No formal decisions were made at the meeting about staffing or capacity; the report was informational and will inform budget planning discussed at the subsequent work session.