Classrooms fill up
Student enrollment increases steadily
By MEGAN THOMAS
Express Staff Writer
Public and private schools are in full swing for the 2004-2005 year.
After a week of school, the Blaine County School District reported an increase of 70 new students for a total of 3,263 students enrolled in the schools. The number increased from last year?s enrollment of 3,193. The majority of the new students enrolled in south county schools.
The higher numbers align with the district?s expectations.
?We expect three percent growth per year,? said Cathy Zaccardi, clerk of the Blaine County School Board.
To accommodate the growth, the district added a third-grade class at Bellevue Elementary and two first-grade classes at Hailey Elementary.
This year the Developmental Preschool in Bellevue recorded 19 students, up from 11 last year. This program serves handicapped children from 3 to 5 years old.
The Bellevue Elementary School has 418 students, an increase of 24 students from last year.
The Carey School increased enrollment by four students, bringing total enrollment to 253.
Hailey Elementary School?serving first through fifth grade?recorded 541 students, compared to last year?s 521. This year the elementary school added two first-grade classes with 44 students.
Enrollment at Hemingway Elementary School in Ketchum remained constant with 429 enrollees in kindergarten through fifth-grade.
The Wood River Middle School experienced the greatest growth in the district. The school?sixth through eighth grade?has 708 kids enrolled, for an overall increase of 29 students.
The Silver Creek Alternative School tallied 32 students, compared to last year?s 29.
Wood River High School recorded 863 students, a decrease of 18 students from the previous year.
?We are in pretty good shape,? Zaccardi said, speaking to the growth.
The Community School in Sun Valley started school on Tuesday, Sept. 7 with 305 students enrolled. The lower school?pre-kindergarten through fifth-grade?has 105 students. The middle school has 85 enrolled, while the upper-school has 115 students.
