Storm Threat Affects School Attendance

With partly cloudy skies, but a storm looming, Highlands County schools opened Monday with 528 fewer students compared to the year before.

First-day enrollment dropped 4.4 percent from 11,940 to 11,412.

Deputy Superintendent Rodney Hollinger said, "It was an unusual opening. You've got the excitement of the first day of school and then you've got the excitement of this tropical storm.

"It will be like we are starting school all over again and hopefully it will be Wednesday morning," he said.

Schools are closed today.

Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction Becky Fleck said with schools being closed Tuesday due to the storm, the first-day enrollment was significantly lower than expected.

"We will have a much better picture of actual enrollment in the latter part of the week," she said. "Today Monday obviously being a very different day for us, one that we have not encountered in the past, is not a good predictor of what our average enrollment will be for this year."

Memorial Elementary School's opening was smooth with staff, parents and even students pointing out directions for parents looking for their child's classroom.

With three children attending the new school, Laurie Holly had a lot of walking ahead of her to reach each child's classroom.

After trekking to one end of the school, she said goodbye to her daughter, 7-year-old Anne, who is in second grade.

After a long walk to the other end of the school, she wished a good day to her son, 9-year-old Alex, who is in fourth grade.

Then last, but not least, she walked her other son, 5-year-old Andrew, to his kindergarten classroom, which was near the end of the hall.

She video recorded Andrew's first moments at his desk.

The tardy buzzer sounded at 7:40 a.m., but parents continued to arrive with their children and were still trickling in after 8 a.m.

School Board Member Wally Randall was happy overall with the first day of school.

"The bus drop off went really smooth," he added.

Randall was stationed at the Memorial Elementary's entry door at the bus drop off and told students to follow the hallway to the cafeteria where early arriving students waited before going to their classrooms.

"It's a big cafeteria," a student commented.

Principal Ruby Handley said enrollment will be higher than expected.

"I think we are going to have more today," she said. "We've grown; we grew by about 100 in a week."

The school was prepared for the numerous parents who waited to enroll their children on the first day.

The main office was filled with parents and children, but staff in the media center handled the overflow of those coming in to enroll.

"We will have to do this all over again Wednesday," Randall quipped.

Memorial Elementary School with 638 students on Monday easily surpassed the initial enrollment targets for the school which were in the 500 to 550 range.

Three elementary schools saw a large decrease in enrollment due in part to Memorial Elementary's opening:

• Cracker Trail Elementary - 858 to 626 for a decrease of 232.

• Park Elementary - 647 to 450 for a decrease of 197.

• Avon Elementary - 693 to 554 for a decrease of 139.