Skagway School. (Greta Mart)
The number of students attending the Skagway School is expected to hover around the same amount as last school year.
Superintendent Josh Coughran says the district started the year off with 124 students. That number is expected to drop after seasonal employees leave in the fall.
Coughran says the FY18 budget was built on an estimated 105 students, but now he expects to end up with around 110-115.
“But I feel really confident we’re going to stay above that hundred level, which is kind of the cliff financially for schools,” says Coughran.
Enrollment surpassed 100 students at the Skagway School in 2015, leading to a significant increase in state funding.
The boost in student numbers and subsequent funding allowed the school to hire new teachers and transition from multi-grade, to single-grade elementary classrooms.
The school continued to grow last year, with 113 students enrolled.
During the 2016-2017 school year, students at the Skagway School performed better than any other district in Alaska on a statewide standardized test. Results were released Friday. KHNS will have more on test results from Skagway, Haines and Klukwan later this week.
