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Arlington ISD hears warning on declining public enrollment as micro‑schools and homeschooling grow
Summary
At a Dec. 11 workshop, Zonda Education consultant Bob Hamilton told Arlington ISD trustees that a mix of housing costs, low birthrates and rising school choice (homeschools, micro‑schools, virtual programs) have likely peaked Texas public‑school enrollment and will pressure district planning and finances.
Arlington ISD trustees on Dec. 11 heard a data‑driven warning that public school enrollment in Texas may have peaked and that new schooling models are reshaping where families enroll children.
Bob Hamilton of Zonda Education told the board the state faces a “perfect storm” of factors — a tight housing market, low birthrates and an expanding landscape of school choice — that he said will reduce public school headcounts. "My prediction is last year's enrollment across the state ... that 5,500,000 kids, that is going to be the state of Texas's peak enrollment in public schools. From this point forward, it's only going to go down," Hamilton said.
Hamilton outlined several components of that change: charter and…
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