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Minnetonka reports districtwide enrollment gains, kindergarten surge on Oct. 1 count
Summary
Minnetonka Public Schools reported an increase of 265 students compared with last year based on the Oct. 1 official count. The district saw elementary enrollment rise by 109 students, kindergarten increase by about 101, high school enrollment exceed 3,600, and continued growth in full-time Tonka Online and the Navigator program.
Minnetonka Public Schools reported an overall enrollment increase of 265 students on the state'mandated Oct. 1 count, the district said during a study-session presentation Oct. 23.
Angie Flowers, the district's general counsel and executive director of human resources, presented the opening-school report. She said elementary enrollment increased by 109 students compared with last year and that kindergarten enrollment rose by about 101 students. The district recorded its largest enrollment increase in five years.
"Overall, we had 265 more students enrolled this year compared to last year, Our largest increase in 5 years," Flowers said. Tonka Online, the district's full-time online program, reported its highest full-time enrollment since launching, with growth at elementary, middle and high school levels.
Flowers provided grade-by-grade and building-level details: Clear Springs rebounded, Scenic Heights recorded a notable increase, and Groveland had a higher-than-average third-grade class size. Middle school totals were stable overall; MME increased by 45 students while MMW had two fewer students. High school enrollment reached 3,601, up 48 from the previous year.
On program-specific trends, the Navigator elementary program reported a historical high of 213 students in 10 classrooms, up 10 from last year. Immersion program shares shifted slightly: Chinese immersion decreased by about 1 percentage point districtwide and Spanish immersion decreased by about 1 point as well; the district's overall split was approximately 63% English and 37% immersion.
Staffing indicators included a 96% fill rate for paraprofessional positions (56 of 62 filled) and 53 teachers hired this year; the district reported it began the year with teaching positions 100% filled on the first day, though subsequent leaves created later gaps.
Board members asked for follow-up data on class-size comparisons between English and immersion programs and discussed whether the kindergarten increase represents a longer-term rebound. Staff said they would pull and share more granular class-size data on request.
