How have enrollment numbers changed in Central Texas school districts in the past decade?

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Over the past decade, the number of students enrolled in Central Texas school districts increased by nearly 35,000.

KXAN looked at enrollment data from the Texas Education Agency for all 58 districts in our viewing area.

Between the 2011-12 and 2021-22 school years, enrollment areawide increased by 34,772. That’s despite a dip of about 12,000 in the 2020-21 school year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Across all 58 districts, enrollment increased from a little over 330,000 in 2011-12 to more than 366,000 in 2021-22.

The changes were far from uniform across each district. While enrollment areawide grew by 10.5%, several districts grew at a much faster pace, including Jarrell ISD, Liberty Hill ISD and Coupland ISD, all of which grew by more than 100% over the 10-year period.

Meanwhile, 15 districts saw enrollment figures fall over the past decade, including Austin ISD and Del Valle ISD.

The map below shows how enrollment has changed in each local district over the past decade. Districts shaded in green have seen an increase in the number of students since the 2011-12 school year, while those in red have seen a drop in student enrollment.

Hover over or click on a district to see enrollment numbers for that district. You can also search for a specific district using the search function in the top left of the map.

Despite a decrease of roughly 12,000 students over the 10-year period, Austin ISD remains the largest district in the KXAN viewing area, accounting for one in five students in the area.

TEA data shows there were nearly 75,000 students in the district in the 2021-22 school year, down from 86,528 in 2011-12, a 13.8% decrease.

The chart below shows the largest districts in the region. Several saw drops in enrollment during the pandemic, but many have since rebounded, including Leander ISD, Hays CISD, Georgetown ISD, Bastrop ISD, Lake Travis ISD and Hutto ISD.

Several districts have experienced tremendous growth over the past decade, especially in suburban areas surrounding Austin.

Of districts with more than 1,000 students, Jarrell ISD has grown the fastest, up more than 185% over the past 10 years. The district grew from 1,010 students in 2011-12 to 2,885 students in 2021-22.

Liberty Hill ISD has also rapidly grown, up almost 150%, and district leaders don’t expect a slow down anytime soon.

“Believe it or not, we have demographic projections that will get us to 12,000 students by the end of 2025 and to upward of 23,000 to 24,000 by the end of the decade,” superintendent Steve Snell told KXAN in January.

Last year, voters in the district approved a $491.7 million bond designed to help the district keep up with the growth. The bonds will allow LHISD to build two new elementary schools, a new middle school and a new high school.

Dripping Springs ISD had the third-fastest growth over the past decade among districts with more than 1,000 students, increasing enrollment figures by almost 75%.

Dripping Springs, Liberty Hill and Jarrell are all featured in the top 20 fastest-growing cities in the state in population figures released by the U.S. Census Bureau earlier this year.

Here’s a look at how enrollment has changed in each district, using data from the Texas Education Agency:

Austin ISD