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NEW MATAMORAS -- The number of resident students attending school outside the district caught the attention of the Frontier local School board of education Thursday night.
The treasurer’s report at the board meeting included open enrollment figures showing that 67 students living within the district are attending school elsewhere, being homeschooled or are getting their educations through an online academy.
According to Ohio Department of Education data from October 2019, Frontier has a total enrollment of 536 at its three buildings – Newport and New Matamoras elementary schools and Frontier Middle and High School. The district has 35 open enrollment students attending from other districts, meaning a net loss of 32 students to other education systems or districts.
Treasurer Lee Howard told the board each student lost costs the district $6,020 in state funding.
Board member Joani Reese murmured, “Wow.”
The difference between open enrolled students gained and lost cost the district $175,033.19 this year, according to Howard’s records.
Students enroll elsewhere for a variety of reasons, superintendent Beth Brown said. As an example, she said, one senior she spoke to said he switched to Marietta High School because it offered a course not available at Frontier in line with his plans to become an emergency medical technician.
Board president Jeff Knowlton asked whether the district might conduct a survey to determine why students went elsewhere, and asked Andy Brooks, superintendent of the Southeastern Ohio Education Service Center, whether the ESC might assist with creating the survey.
Brooks, who attended the meeting to offer a presentation about the ESC’s services, said it could be done.
“It would be interesting to find out why,” Brooks said. “Sometimes it’s convenience, but once they leave I know it’s hard to get them back.”
Brooks mentioned that the ESC offers a virtual academy, which could help Frontier retain students who have decided to take their studies online.
“We could absolutely do a survey,” he said.
Howard said after the meeting that although Frontier historically has experienced a deficit in open enrollment, this year’s figures were higher than usual.
“We’ve had a jump this year,” she said.
Convenience can account for much of that situation, she said. Parents who live on the western edge of the district are geographically closer to Marietta schools, and many Frontier parents work in Marietta. A few students transfer to Fort Frye, she said, and some go to Switzerland of Ohio in Belmont or Monroe counties. Frontier draws students from those counties as well, she said.
The board also heard a presentation from the district’s new Spanish language teacher, Alejandra “Alex” Avalos, who is organizing a trip for her students to Puerto Rico for four days in early April 2021. It gives students just over a year to fundraise the $1,800 they will each need for the trip, she told the board.
“I’ve been there, and I thought it would be fair to share this kind of experience with my students,” she said. “I like the opportunity, all the things they’ll be able to see. I’m excited about this.”
Avalos will hold an information session for parents and students at 6 p.m. Thursday in the media center at the high school. The deadline to enroll for the trip is March 12, she said, and a deposit of $50 is required by then.
In other business, the board:
• Approved utility contracts for 36 months with Freeport Energy Solutions for electric power and AT&T for broadband and telephone services
• Approved receipt of donations totaling $2,168.80
Michael Kelly can be contacted at mkelly@mariettatimes.com.