District business staff reported at the October board meeting that 3,651 students who reside within Ogden School District boundaries attend other LEAs across the state. The report was drawn from October 1 counts and, administrators said, the district's data about students attending other LEAs has become more accurate in recent years.

The business administrator told the board the district's October 1 enrollment dropped to below 10,000 students for the first time in records available to staff, and that the district recorded a net decline of 247 students this year — the largest drop since the first year after COVID‑19. Administrators said the decline is partly attributable to a lower inflow of newcomer multilingual learners this year.

Why it matters: District leaders said losing students affects funding, staffing and long‑term planning. Board members pressed staff on whether the district could run exit surveys for families who leave to understand whether departures are driven by program choice, perception, or broader demographic trends.

What was discussed: Staff described a plan to implement a real‑time exit survey process at school offices when families notify schools they intend to unenroll; the district's Anchor Leadership team has been developing that process. Board members asked whether the district could issue surveys now to families who already left. Staff cautioned that sending surveys months after families leave could yield lower response rates and appear disingenuous; they emphasized collecting information at the point of unenrollment and tracking reasons in a dashboard. The board also discussed the SEATS (online seats) program and noted that students taking online courses through statewide providers may remain on district rolls and that the district pays for some online course slots when students select external providers.

Speakers and details: The business administrator presented the October 1 enrollment report, citing the 3,651 number for resident students attending other LEAs and naming OPA and Da Vinci as top destinations. Staff explained that some remote‑area students attend online providers (seats programs) and remain enrolled in Ogden for services. Board members asked administrators to provide more granular reports (ethnicity breakdowns, counts of SEATS enrollments) at a future meeting.

Next steps: District staff said they will develop the unenrollment survey process, populate a real‑time data dashboard as responses arrive and return with additional breakdowns (SEATS counts, ethnicity and neighborhood comparisons) at a subsequent meeting.