SALT LAKE CITY — School enrollment took a hit during COVID-19, but Utah ranks #1 in the nation for its increases in school enrollment from 2019-2023, according to a recently released report from Scholaroo.
Its report says that Utah increased school enrollment by 4.73 percent, for a total of 718,700 students enrolled from pre-k to graduate school.
South Dakota was just behind Utah's increase at 4.6 percent, and North Dakota trailed its neighbor at 4.53 percent growth.
On the other end of the spectrum, Mississippi saw a decline in student enrollment of 10.74 percent, with New Hamphire ranking 49th with an 8.67 drop in enrollment.
Scholoaroo, an organization dedicated to finding scholarships for students, says that enrollment figures provide key data into the demographics of the student population as well as trends in education.
These numbers in turn can be used by policy makers to make informed decisions about school funding, resource allocation, and curriculum development.
Percent change in total enrollment – 2019 to 2023
Scholaroo's report also provides information about the racial composition of enrolled students, which are dropping for White and Black students but increasing for Hispanic and Asian students.
High school drop-out rates are measured as well; the study found that this rate is dropped in the last decade from 7.4 percent in 2010 to 5.3 percent in 2020.
