Chesterton Tribune

 

 

Duneland reports 5,851 students on first day, less than 2012 figures

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By JEFF SCHULTZ

Duneland School officials said they expect numbers “will fluctuate” between now and Sept. 13, the day when the state determines the schools’ average daily membership (ADM), but Wednesday’s first day student head count for the entire school corporation was 5,851.

That number is down from last year’s back-to-school count of 5,939, as well as previous years 2011 (5,934) and 2010 (5,871).

Chesterton High School saw more than 2,000 students in 2012 but this year’s figure slipped to 1,959.

School Superintendent Dave Pruis said there were 95 to 100 students who are registered at the high school who “didn’t show up for whatever reason” Wednesday, but the number typically increases after the first week. Building administrators will begin making calls to check on registered students who haven’t come to class, he said.

The schools have not yet been able to determine why there is a decrease, Pruis said, but the numbers “are what they are.”

Discovery Charter School earlier this week reported an increase in its first day figure this year of more than 40 students. Duneland School officials in the past have cited the opening of the charter school as a reason for subsiding Duneland numbers.

Pruis noted the number of kindergarten students is up this year from the 2012 count, with 377 tallied Wednesday. Strong numbers were also present in the district numbers for 4th grade with 447 students and 2nd Grade with 408 students.

Meanwhile, new assistant superintendent of curriculum and instruction Jim Goetz said the first week back has been a great start to the 2013-14 school years with no major problems.

“Things went really well. Nobody was out wandering the hallways which often happens on the first day. The teachers were teaching. Things were happening, and the buses got the kids home safely,” said Goetz.

Goetz reported counts for each individual school as follows:

CHS: 1,959 students

9th - 499

10th - 479

11th - 485

12th - 496

CMS: 1,007 students

7th - 506

8th - 501

Westchester Intermediate: 519 students

5th - 249

6th - 270

Liberty Intermediate: 365 students

5th - 181

6th - 184

Liberty Elementary: 546 students

Kindergarten - 112

1st - 84

2nd - 131

3rd - 100

4th - 119

Yost Elementary: 400 students

Kindergarten - 77

1st - 70

2nd - 83

3rd - 80

4th - 90

Bailey Elementary: 420 students

Kindergarten - 73

1st - 76

2nd - 85

3rd - 92

4th - 94

Brummitt Elementary: 342 students

Kindergarten - 66

1st - 63

2nd - 66

3rd - 74

4th - 73

Jackson Elementary: 293 students

Kindergarten - 49

1st - 74

2nd - 43

3rd - 56

4th -71

District Totals for Elementary and Intermediate:

Kindergarten - 377

1st - 367

2nd - 408

3rd - 402

4th - 447

5th - 430

6th - 454

 

 

 

Posted 8/23/2013

 

 

 

 

 

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