WACO enrollment shows little change

By Brooks Taylor, Mt. Pleasant News

WAYLAND ? Enrollment in the WACO School District flatlined for the 2017-18 school term, Superintendent Jeff Dicks told WACO School Board members during the board?s regular monthly meeting Monday night.

The administrator said that net student census showed an increase of one student. Dicks, however, said better news may be on the horizon. The 2018 senior class has 34 students (nine seniors are open enrolled from the district) while the preschool class is at 40 students, which is maximum capacity, he noted.

Enrollment gains are the lifeblood of small school districts as each student equals just over $6,700 in state funding.

In other student census statistics, 86 students open enrolled out of the district, an increase of eight from the 2016-17 school year. Conversely, the number of students open enrolled into the district jumped by 11 students, or from 67 to 78. State funding follows the student, meaning WACO loses all funding from district students open enrolled out, but receives the state money for students open enrolled into the district.

Directors approved seven open-enrollment requests with five of the requests including students enrolling out of the district.

?Some of these are for the home-school assistance program,? Dicks said. A school district receives one-third of regular student funding for each home-school student.

Carrie Coble, school board secretary/school business manager, said, ?A couple of these are younger siblings of older siblings already in the district.?

The contract for Sabrina Ray, long-term substitute teacher for the second grade at Crawfordsville Elementary School, was approved. Dicks told the board last month that the class had over 30 students, necessitating either another full-time teacher or long-term substitute.

Board policy states that a long-term substitute be paid $112.91 per day for the first five days and then $166.82 per day after the initial five days. Dicks recommended waiving the lower pay amount and giving Ray the $166.82 because the district hopes that she teaches the full school year.

A long-term substitute does not receive benefits until after three months of employment, he added.

Board members passed a resolution to have Warden/Knapp Architects and Engineers solicit bids for roof repairs at the high school and also go forward with the bid letting for the WACO High School improvement plan.

The district plans to replace one-fourth of the high school roof in 2018. The work is budgeted at $114,000. Repair is needed because of leaks in the science room and gutter problems.

?If we hadn?t had leaks, I would have suggested putting it off a year,? Dicks said. ?Sometimes when you disrupt a roof, you develop other problems.?

WACO School Board members will meet again in regular session Monday, Nov. 20, at 6:30 p.m. at the secondary building in Wayland.