District staff presented an enrollment-options and history report that summarized student movement into and out of the Northfield Public School District and highlighted trends since the 2011–12 period.

Staff said the report covers nonresident students open-enrolling into Northfield under state law, nonresident agreements, Northfield residents who enroll elsewhere (traditional districts, private/parochial, homeschool or charter), and an October 1 snapshot this year. Key figures noted: Northfield students out to other traditional public districts dropped slightly from 292 to 288; nonresident students in dropped from 549 to 480; and a net-out percentage of about 10.91% when comparing students in vs. students out relative to October 1 counts over recent years.

The report noted 303 students currently listed with a Faribault ZIP code who attend Northfield schools; board members asked when those students enter the district (kindergarten, middle or high school) and whether mapping tools could reveal geographic patterns. Staff said they will use mapping tools and focus groups with St. Olaf and the vendor Teamworks to target families who live in Northfield but choose other traditional public districts.

Staff asked the board whether deeper analysis should prioritize larger geographic clusters rather than one-off cases and said they will attempt to recruit families for focus groups to better understand 'why did you choose a different school option' and 'what would it take to return.' No formal action was taken; staff said they will return with deeper analysis.