Notes on New York City school student enrollment decline
In other words, parents began leaving the city and particularly the Department of Education’s schools even before COVID. More would have chosen charter schools if not for the unconscionable cap on them; instead, many parents had to leave the city entirely.
Of course, the bottom fell out of the DOE’s kindergarten enrollment during the pandemic, dropping 5.5 percent in a single year. Private and religious schools were down by 0.9 percent and charter schools stayed virtually unchanged — capped by the state Legislature.
What happened this year? Only the DOE knows — and it’s not talking.
