Teachers at the Haines School got a surprise when taking attendance for the first time the holidays: an unexpected number of their students were missing.
Seventeen students didn’t return to the Haines School district after winter break. In total, that’s a little more than six percent of the remaining student body.
“Families having to leave our town because they can’t support their family is super concerning,” Principal Rene Martin says.
Up to five of the students were seniors graduating early. Martin couldn’t confirm an exact number since demographic groups of kids that small are kept confidential for privacy.
The other 12 are students whose families pulled them out of school because they couldn’t afford to stay in Haines, Martin says.
“I think for the kids, it’s sad to see their friends go. I think the demoralizing part is really more for us, and the Board, and the borough Assembly because, you know, we’re struggling to try to find jobs and help families so this doesn’t happen,” she says. “It’s just a struggle.”
Haines’ school population is at a historic low, and has been declining steadily for years, Martin says. The K-12 school has 256 currently enrolled, not including the 17 who left. The school peaked at 596 students in the early 70s.
That can be linked to the economy, Martin says.
“[That was the] boon of logging, boon of the mill, fishing, everything,” she says.
But now, student data shows Haines has changed.
“Almost half of our student population qualify for free or reduced lunch,” Martin says. “Almost half of our families are not living at a full quality of life amount of money that the government anticipates you need to live. So that’s a significant portion of our town that are struggling.”
She doesn’t think the trend will change unless Haines’ economy does. Neither does Darsie Culbeck, who spoke to the Borough Assembly about the departures. He has two kids in the school district.
“As one indicator of the health of our community, it’s a strong one. You may not know it, but it’s desperate in Haines. A lot of people in this town are barely making it,” Culbeck says.
Though the school is funded based on enrollment numbers, departures won’t affect the budget this year. The student count was set finalized in October. But fewer students will mean less money for the school next year — unless new families move to town.
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I hear two more students will be withdrawing and moving with their family next week. 🙁
With all due respect to Ms. Martin, Mr. Culbeck and the reporting of Berett Wilber, I believe we need to take a closer look at the numbers before we jump to conclusions.
Archived census data from live.laborstats.alaska.gov show 1970 and 1980 Haines populations at 1,504 and 1,680 respectively. Perhaps I read the tables wrong, and maybe the census divisions were ambiguous or marginally represented so let’s just say those counts are short by 25 percent: Adjusted for the sake of argument we could say the 1970 total population was more like 1,880 people and in 1980 there were 2,100 folks living here for a decadal average of 1,990. So then there are 596 kids in school at one point during this period of Haines’ history…1,990 minus 596 equals 1,394 non-school attending people. When we cut an assumed 25 percent of that 1,394 for the tykes, elderly, and adults simply not in a family way, we have 1,046 potential parents. And boldly assuming the male to female ratio is equal and they’re all paired up for breeding there would be 523 households to fill the school with 596 students–1.14 kids per hypothetical family.
So what’s the point? Well… let’s consider the scientifically possible facts of yesteryear with what’s happening today: The US Census Bureau’s 2010 count was 2,508 souls within the vicinity of Haines, and their 2016 estimate has us at 2,496–a six-year average of 2,502. Comparing average populations of the boom-time years to now, there has been a full 25 percent increase in local citizenship yet a 57 percent decrease in student enrollment.
-scratching head- What could this possibly mean!? How is this so!?
First, it is important to realize fault in the hypothesis. It is unlikely the census reports from 1970 and 80 are out of whack by 25 percent. Secondly, it’s also unlikely that there were 523 child-rearing households in Haines between 1970 and 1980. However, the illustration is not a wholly improbable rendering of the past and gives credit to the following:
Baby Boomers and their Silent predecessors didn’t hold back when it came to perpetuating the species–For a number of value-based reasons family units were simply larger 50 years ago. We know this. It is a well-documented fact.
To say that student enrollment figures are an indicator of economy is correct only in a broad sense. Golden ages and eras of boom and bust most definitely contribute to spikes in density, development and quality of life among populations. However, [the spikes] are anomalous, or incomplete baselines to objectively explain the current state of affairs. There was undoubtedly a percentage of kids in school whose parents had no intention of sticking around. They were here because the gittn’ was good. Transients. Forty-niners of the wood you could say, here and gone again between census counts…for whatever reason there was a whole-lotta movin on…grass was greener somewheres else. Should we consider meteorological influences? Military?
Supposedly there’s 2,500 folks here now and there might just be 523 households, but the baby-making just ain’t happening like it did back in the good old days and I don’t think it’s for lack of fertile men and women who like to get it on.
So lovers and husbands and wives are choosing to not have kids because they sat down and completed a cost-benefit analysis that shows the financial burden of parenthood is incommensurate with combined average annual income and living expenses in Haines? Families across America are saying they can’t afford to move to Haines, Alaska because their kids’ Spaghetti-O and Coco Puff habits will break the bank? Living in a used house is dirty and lower class?
Uhhhh, whuuuu?
-tears welling- If only there were jobs–jobs!–say a glorious mine in yonder mountain from which its riches should spill forth to pluck like rose petals from the river’s current. How foolish an endeavor to bear the fruit of our loins in this desperate time! May Haines Borough School District forgive us the transgressions of our selfish lifestyles and apprehension of the future.
So we must wait. The mine will happen…they’ll come in droves! Some national or global cataclysm is sure to instigate a spate of pregnancy. Another urban exodus will soon be underway (ironically, due to the high cost of living). And it won’t be so desperate anymore–it will be great again!
The community’s average age is a factor. In 1965 the average age in Haines was 16. Today it is 49.
Note: Considering parental status in a hiring process is illegal.
Support Elected Officials as a community.
Follow the planning document outlined vision.
Keep on going! Haines is a magic place and has exceptional people. Just needs to unite
You could start by hiring candidates for vacant positions who have kids, and that have a history of positive contribution to the community RENE. Just sayin.
Haha, yeah! Make it at least a six child minimum to get a job with the Burrough! Maybe tie in bonuses for having additional kids too!
This is not good news for the future of our students, teachers, and/or administrators.
So sad tovthis this happen. If we could get a college or higher learning facility or even special college field classes such as one professor is doing, it would help a lot. Especially in winter. No question that the resources economy is way down. On the other hand season employment is extreamly high. These people leave for 8 months of the year and take their money with them. If only the state had an income tax. Keep in mind that our senior citizen population has grown tremendously. That is not any help for our schools but it is help for the economy in general. Imagine how things could improve if we had 20 professors from around the world bringing in 20 students each several times per year, from around the world in Haines to participate in acredfited field classes in ornithology, fisheries, marine engineering and many more subjects. All winter long, classes could be held for three week or so periods of time, bringing in one or two hundreds students at a time. I think it is possible. That would crest year round jobs to keep families here and enroll their kids in our public schools.
We should keep in mind the high proportion of home school kids. Something that rarely was done in the 70’s.