by Anthony Gockowski
Public school enrollment in Minnesota has declined for a third consecutive year, according to data released this week by the Department of Education.
MDE said enrollment dropped by about 2,427 students during the 2022-23 academic year, a roughly 0.3% decrease.
That’s nearly identical to last school year’s drop of 2,146 students but much smaller than the 17,000 students who left public schools in the 2020-21 school year.
In response to the data, MDE called for “stabilizing funding” for public schools, which is directly tied to student enrollment.
“Minnesota’s students deserve high-quality academic instruction and social-emotional supports,” said Commissioner Willie Jett. “Our public schools must be provided with the necessary resources to meet these needs.”
Democrats are proposing a bill that would raise education spending by more than $1 billion in the next biennium.
Charter and private schools both saw enrollment increases. Charter school enrollment increased by 1.9% and private school enrollment increased by 3.4%. Homeschooling, however, dropped by 5%.
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Anthony Gockowski is Editor-in-Chief of Alpha News. He previously worked as an editor for The Minnesota Sun and Campus Reform, and reported for The Daily Caller.
Photo “Teacher and Students” by Artem Podrez.
