Enrollment continues to fall at BHS

By ALEX STRICKLAND / Bigfork Eagle

Student enrollment at Bigfork High School continued its trend this year, as 25 fewer students started the year than did in 2007.

There are 312 students at BHS, according to the official October 6 enrollment count, down from 337 starting last year and down nearly 100 from 404 students 11 years ago in 1997.

But declining enrollement doesn't necessarily spell doom, according to assistant principal Matt Jensen.

"It means we're able to offer more elective classes with the additional benfit of smaller class sizes," he said. "When you're a small school, less students can slip through the cracks."

Bigfork Elementary saw a drop of seven students from the same time last year, while Bigfork Middle School increased by 10. Total enrollment at the elementary and middle schools has stayed relatively stable for the past six years, though in the late 90's it was between 540 and 570 students. This year there are 474.

The district's total enrollment stands at 786 this year, down from 852 in 2006-2007 and 952 in 1997-1998.

Declining enrollment at the high school was mentioned over the last year as a $11.1 million bond for improvements and renovations to the facility was rejeted by Bigfork voters twice. It has also been cited as an impetus for pushing a "Virtual High School" program that would give students a wider range of study opportunities to help compete academically with larger schools in the valley.

That program, which gets under way as a pilot project in January, could help retain students who might otherwise choose to attend high school in Kalispell, according to project organizers Christina Nadeau, Charlie Appleby and Matt Porrovecchio. The three BHS faculty members presented the plan to the school board last year and got the go-ahead to try it.

Despite its small size, Jensen pointed out that BHS was the only high school in Flathead County to pass its "Annual Yearly Progress" tests for the No Child Left Behind Program in each of the last four years.

"We have a very challenging honors program," he said.

When the Montana State Legislature reconvenes, the smaller numbers will likely spell less funding for the school, though until that happens there's no real way to tell.

"We'll figure it out when it gets here," Jensen said.

Bigfork's enrollment is the smallest of any public Class A high school in the state, though Ronan High School has only about a dozen more students.