DECLINING ENROLLMENT

Reflecting a national trend, the Geneva City School District has experienced a marked drop in enrollment over the past two decades. The number of students attending Geneva public schools has declined 22.5% since 1999.

As the Education Trust reported in February, public school enrollment declined in every region of New York State between the 2017-18 and 2021-22 academic years.

Although the pandemic certainly didn’t help, demographics play a large role. Lower birth and immigration rates have meant a significant decline in the population of school-aged children. Colleges are experiencing a similar downturn.

What will this likely mean in the future? Mergers and consolidations, along with cuts in faculty, administration and other operational costs. Public aid depends heavily how many students come to class, so as pupil counts dwindle, so will school budgets.