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Wenatchee School District projects multi-year enrollment drop, warns of budget and facility impacts
Summary
District finance staff presented data showing declining birth rates and a 76% kindergarten capture rate that produce the district's smallest recent kindergarten class and a model projecting about an 880-student loss over five years; board members said forecasts will guide forthcoming budget reductions and facility planning.
Sean Fitzgerald, the district’s executive director of business and finance, told the Wenatchee School District board on Oct. 28 that a combination of lower birth rates and falling capture rates is driving a multi-year enrollment decline that will affect revenue and long-term planning.
“We’re looking at over a decline of about 880 students over the next 5 years,” Fitzgerald said as he reviewed the district’s enrollment analysis and forecasting models. He told the board the district’s annual average full‑time equivalent (AA FTE) enrollment determines roughly 75% of state apportionment funding, and that sustained decreases matter…
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