Development along the Evergreen Extension is resulting in more students enrolling in School District 43 but not enough to make a huge jump in school district numbers.
Still, the district saw an increase of 47.75 full-time-equivalent (FTE) students for a total student enrolment of 30,434.69 this fall, and the extra students are expected to provide a boost to operating grants.
“Enrolment jumps are taking place mainly in the middle school level, in areas like Coquitlam Town Centre, where densification is occurring along SkyTrain and other major commuter lines,” SD43 spokesman Peter Chevrier said in an email to the news.
The jump suggests Coquitlam is still drawing families even though many of the new homes in the City Centre area are apartments.
SD43 had anticipated a slight drop in the number of students in the district when it did its projections in February based on kindergarten registrations and the number of students graduating. But when head counts were done in September, SD43 had 191.69 FTE students more than projected.
“Increased enrolment will result in increased per-student base funding, which always benefits students, classrooms and schools,” Chevrier said.
The district also counted 69 more special education students than projected in February and 31 more aboriginal education students. There were also 285 more FTE English language learners than projected in February.
