Enrollment Steady For Schools
By Bill Vander Weele
Enrollments for Roosevelt County and other nearby area schools are remaining steady at the start of this school year.
Wolf Point’s enrollment has decreased from 726 in 2023-2024 to 685 students this year.
Wolf Point High School’s enrollment increased from 204 to 207, and the junior high remains constant at 109. Enrollment for Northside has went down from 169 to 158. The figure for Southside has decreased from 244 to 211 students.
The Poplar School District has increased slightly from 831 students last year to 834 students this fall.
Class numbers are fairly equal in Poplar. “A lot of our bigger classes have gone through,” Poplar Superintendent Keith Erickson said. “Some of our high school classes are pretty big.”
Erickson is excited that Poplar has started a preschool program that features 26 students. He explained that the state legislature has approved funding for preschool instruction as long as school districts have a certified early childhood teacher.
The enrollment in Frazer has increased from 76 at the end of the 2024 school year to 101 students this fall.
“Part of it is because we’ve added pre-K,” Superintendent Sarah Ruff said. “But we have some students that are coming from other schools as well.”
The enrollment for Lustre Christian High School remains at about 40 students after being 44 last fall and in the low 30s the year before.
Froid has experienced an enrollment jump to 101 students after having 81 students last May.
One of the reasons for Froid’s growth is the start of a preschool program that features 11 young learners. The high school’s enrollment is 40 students with about 10 students in each of the four classes.
The Bainville School District is also experiencing an enrollment jump. Bainville’s enrollment is 178 students, which is a jump of 10 from the end of the last school year.
“We’re getting to the point where some classrooms are full,” Bainville Superintendent Darin Hannum said. “It has its issues, but it’s a good deal.”
Hannum added, “It’s a great start to the year. We’re excited to be back.”
Culbertson superintendent Nicole Simonsen also reports that enrollment is heading in the right direction.
Culbertson has 282 students compared to 275 last May.
Brockton’s enrollment is about 135-140 students. Superintendent Josh Patterson said the elementary district has a decrease of about 15 students and the high school is down about eight students.
“We’re hoping to pick up some kids along the way,” Patterson said.
