COLUMBUS, Ind. — Bartholomew Consolidated School Corp. has approximately 11,309 students as of Sept. 18, up 34 from last year’s fall count.
Superintendent Jim Roberts said that one of the reasons for the increase was students from other districts being drawn to BCSC by the school, corporation’s remote options.
Flat Rock-Hawcreek has a final count of 981 students as of Oct. 1, which is up almost 40 from last year. Superintendent Shawn Price called it the school’s “biggest year of growth in the last five years,” for a school corporation that has shown continuing enrollment increases.
These numbers come from Average Daily Membership counts from both school corporations. The state uses ADM to allot tuition funding support to schools. According to BCSC Assistant Superintendent of Finance Chad Phillips, the state’s per-pupil allocation amount is $5,703 for the 2020-21 fiscal year.
Typically, the state funds in-person students 100% and provides 85% of the per-pupil amount for virtual students. However, this year, the Indiana State Board of Education has chosen to give 100% funding for students who were in-person learners in February and are now enrolled in virtual learning due to COVID-19. Students who were virtual learners in both February and fall of 2020 are still counted as virtual from a funding perspective.
For more on this story, see Sunday’s Republic.
