With enrollment dropping, Boulder Valley School District tweaks open enrollment to attract out-of-district families

The Boulder Valley School District’s open enrollment period began Nov. 1, with new guidelines that, for the first time, give priority to parents who work within the district over those who neither live nor work in Boulder Valley. Families residing within BVSD still receive priority over any families outside the district.

The new guidelines are an attempt to address BVSD’s declining enrollment, which the district attributes to a nationwide declining birthrate and Boulder County’s high housing costs. Enrollment is projected to drop by about 1,700 students over the next five years – a 1.5% annual decline, according to district spokesperson Randy Barber. This drop is expected to reduce state funding, an impact heightened by recent changes in how the state allocates funding to school districts. BVSD isn’t alone in this trend: Last year, more than half of Colorado’s school districts saw enrollment declines, and statewide enrollment is now at its lowest level in a decade. 

Colorado’s school choice policy guarantees students a spot at their neighborhood school. If space is available after all local students are placed, students from outside the neighborhood or district may apply through open enrollment. Out-of-district applicants are generally considered last in line. Under the new policy, however, parents who work within BVSD boundaries will have a better chance of enrolling their child. 

“I think it’s an opportunity to signal to folks that work here that we do have room in our schools because our enrollment has been declining,” Superintendent Rob Anderson said.

The district doesn’t have an estimate yet on how many families may be interested under the new guidelines but expects to gauge demand now that the enrollment window has opened.

This year, six BVSD schools — Coal Creek, Community Montessori, Eldorado K-5, Flatirons, Kohl and Mesa Elementary — entered a “low-enrollment advisory” phase due to having fewer than two classes per grade and operating at below 60% capacity. Heatherwood Elementary faces more severe challenges, with just 1.5 classes per grade and under 50% capacity, putting it in a “community engagement” phase. To attract more students, Heatherwood has proposed launching an environmental STEAM program.

When enrollment at a school declines below three classes per grade level, there often is not enough funding to support full-time librarians, special education teachers and counselors, according to district officials. Schools with only two classes per grade often rely on traveling or part-time specialist teachers, have limited scheduling flexibility, and offer fewer extracurricular and co-curricular activities.

“As enrollment declines at a school and the fixed costs are distributed over fewer students, the benefits of the economy of scale of larger schools are lost,” Deputy Superintendent Lora De La Cruz said at a meeting last year. “Instructional resources also decline and then disproportionate resources are required to maintain smaller schools, which diverts funding from student needs.” 

Although open enrollment is available to students of all ages, BVSD’s elementary schools need the most help, both because they are facing a steeper enrollment decline and because they experience greater impacts from loss of enrollment due to their smaller size. 

The district predicts that by the 2028-29 school year, seven schools will be under a low-enrollment advisory phase and another six will enter the more serious community  engagement phase, doubling the number of under-enrolled schools. BVSD has a total of 56 schools. 

How open enrollment works 

In BVSD, families must submit applications between Nov. 1, 2024 and Jan. 8, 2025, to be entered into a lottery. Placement is not guaranteed, and no preference is given for early applications. Parents can choose up to three schools. 

“I would say that outside of charter schools, folks who apply [on time] for any of our schools have a very high likelihood of being able to get their first choice,” Superintendent Anderson said.

The push this year to encourage people who commute to Boulder Valley for work to open enroll includes the message, “Give them the best education possible.” Students who finish school before their parents’ workday ends may need extended care, Barber acknowledged. While many BVSD schools offer School Age Care (SAC) programs that provide after-school care, SAC is not available at every school and often has waitlists. Anderson said that BVSD will adjust to support these new students as needed.

Changing enrollment preferences is one of several strategies BVSD is testing to increase enrollment. In spring 2025, the district will review attendance boundaries for each school, according to Anderson. BVSD also considered giving  students with grandparents in the district an enrollment preference, but ultimately decided against it, citing concerns about favoring generational wealth and questions on why eligibility would be limited to grandparents rather than other extended family members who may provide child care. The idea may be reconsidered in the future.

BVSD enrollment priority tiers

1. Returning BVSD students: Students returning from another school to their designated neighborhood school.
2. Continuing in-district students: Students who moved out of their neighborhood school area but still live in the district, and wish to continue at their school.
3. Sibling preference: New students with a sibling already attending the school, or siblings applying together during open enrollment.
4. Children of BVSD employees: Students whose parents work for BVSD at a qualifying benefits level (20+ hours/week for classified staff, 0.50 FTE for others).
5. BVSD residents: Students who live within BVSD boundaries.
6. Current out-of-district students: Students who have moved outside of the district and wish to continue going to their school.
7. **Non-district residents who work in the district: Students whose parents live outside BVSD boundaries but work within the district.**
8. Non-district residents: Students who live outside BVSD boundaries.