High School Enrollment in the Flint Area

Does anyone have any insight into the strange enrollment shifts at Flint high schools?

- Northern had 997 students in 2009. Now it's up to 1,507.
- Southwestern had 1500 students in 2008. Now it's dipped to just 658.
- Northwestern had 540 students in 2006. Now it's at 1,219.

We know that the overall trend is for fewer high school students in Flint as the population drops. And we know that when Central closed last year it had around 900 students, and those that didn't graduate had to go somewhere. But it appears that very few of them went to Southwestern. Was that intentional?

Then there's Powers, with just 598 students, and Beecher with only 400.

If the trends continue, Flint clearly has one public high school in its future. It would work now if the school district had the right facility.

Here's some background info on enrollment from a March 29, 2009 post:

It's difficult for many Flint Expatriates who haven't been back in a while to realize just how much the city has changed over the years. Some basic numbers from the Flint Community Schools Facilities Advisory Committee Report reveal that the school-age population has disappeared along with the G.M. jobs.

When G.M. employment peaked at approximately 80,000 jobs in 1968, Flint schools (K-12) had 46,557 students.

By the fall of 2008, there were just 14,056 students.

Enrollment is projected to dip to 10,432 students by the fall of 2013. That's a 78% decline since 1968. It means that there will only be about 2,500 high-school students in the entire district.

So why is the city agonizing over whether to close Central or Southwestern? With numbers this low and the budget problems that come with plummeting enrollment, shouldn't the city opt for a single high school for Flint?

The enrollment would still be small compared to the biggest high schools in the country, which tend to be more efficient and offer more classes and programs. Here's a list of the largest high schools by enrollment:

1. Belmont -- Los Angeles 5,299

1. Elizabeth -- Elizabeth, N.J. 5,299

3. Fremont -- Los Angeles 5,083

4. South Gate -- South Gate, Calif. 5,020

5. Roosevelt -- Los Angeles 4,940

6. Monroe -- North Hills, Calif. 4,881

7. Los Angeles -- Los Angeles 4,876

8. Bell -- Bell, Calif. 4,855

9. Garfield -- Los Angeles 4,844

10. Lynwood -- Lynwood, Calif. 4,818

11. Long Beach Polytechnic -- Long Beach, Calif. 4,779

12. Judson -- Converse, Tex. 4,778

13. Sachem -- Lake Ronkonkoma, N.Y. 4,718

14. Fort Hamilton -- Brooklyn, N.Y. 4,679

15. Felix Varela -- Miami 4,655

16. San Fernando -- San Fernando, Calif. 4,602

17. G. Holmes Braddock -- Miami 4,598

18. Huntington Park -- Huntington Park, Calif. 4,577

19. Marshall -- Los Angeles 4,550

20. Lane Technical -- Chicago 4,527

21. North Hollywood -- North Hollywood, Calif. 4,509

22. John F. Kennedy -- Bronx, N.Y. 4,422

23. Barbara Goleman -- Miami 4,417

24. Wilson -- Long Beach 4,383

25. Robinson Secondary -- Fairfax County 4,378

Flint Beecher Impressive in Class C Football

With their 28-14 victory over Northwestern on Friday, the Beecher Bucs are 3-0 and have outscored their opponents 105-27. Southewestern is going in the opposite direction. They're 0-3 and have been outscored 117-32.

Yes, this is part of my entirely random coverage of Flint high school football.

High School Angst

It's hard to tell if Powers and the Flint Board of Education are just being cagey negotiators as they try to work out a deal on the fate of Powers Catholic, Central and Southwestern High Schools...or if nobody is really sure what they're doing.

As Kristen Longley of The Flint Journal shows in her most recent coverage, all parties are suddenly being very vague: Powers isn't sure it wants Central, and Flint Superintendent Linda Thompson isn't sure Central's even closing...and if it is, she's not certain Flint wants to part with the building.

There's no offer on the table, but Powers would consider a move to Central if Flint's Board of Education follows through on recommendations to close it, an attorney said Wednesday.

"Central may not be right for us, but at least we should be talking about it," said attorney Michael Manley, who represents Powers. "We would have to inspect the building and see if it's doable for us before we ever made a formal offer."

The Flint School District last week declined Powers' $5-million offer for Flint's Southwestern Academy. Powers for years has been trying to move further south so it can compete with districts such as Grand Blanc and Fenton.

"We hear our parents and our future parents loud and clear," Manley said. "They have told us we need to come closer to where they live."

Flint Superintendent Linda Thompson said the matter would have to be discussed with the Board of Education. There are no plans for the Central site at this time if it does close.

"There's a lot of history at Flint Central for the Flint Community Schools," she said. "The fact that we can't run it right now doesn't mean we've given up on that site."

What are the odds that Powers ends up closing or leaving Flint, and the city is left with a vacant, boarded up high school?

High School Roulette

But wait...Powers Catholic isn't giving up on getting its hands on a Flint public high school. Southwestern wasn't for sale, but Powers says Central High will do just fine.

Flint School District Not Interested

K-12 Corner, Kristen Longley's excellent education blog, reports that the Flint School District has turned down Powers' $5 million offer to buy Southwestern. That spells trouble for Flint Central.

High Schools and Murder: Location, Location, Location

I've added icons for the various Flint high schools — Central, Northern, Powers and Southwestern Academy — to the 2008 Flint Murder Map. It provides a nice visual representation of why Powers is willing to part with $5 million to relocate to Southwestern.

Please note that Northwestern and Powers are so close to each other that I couldn't figure out how to get an icon on the map for both of them. Nothing personal.

Mayor Gets Vague about Flint High Schools

Wurstside Warlord just alerted me to a post on K-12 Corner, Flint Journal education reporter Kristen Longley's new blog, that has some interesting info if you're trying to read the tea leaves and figure out the fate of Central, Southewestern and Powers High Schools. A few highlights:

1. Temporary Mayor Mike Brown says he wants Powers to stay in Flint. (Even though, as Wurstside points out, it's not actually in the city limits now. I say if the location is accessible by the Dupont Street bus, it's within the spirit of the Flint city limits. But technically it's in Mt. Morris Township, even though it has a Flint mailing address. Whew!)

2. Even though Brown wants Powers to stay, he's not sure Southwestern is the right spot for it.

3. Brown says he won't try to influence schools Superindentant Linda Thompson, even though he meets with her weekly.

4. Brown attended St. Michael's, but all five of his kids went to Central.

5. None of Brown's kids went to Southwestern.

High School Confidential

Powers Catholic's public offer to buy Southwestern Academy has added some new heat to an already emotional subject — closing Flint schools as the city's population and resources decline. It appeared from committee reports that Flint Central was being set up as the most likely candidate to shut down.

As Flint Journal reporter Kristen Longley recently reported, "an advisory committee has labeled Central as 'an example of possibly the worst facility' in the district. The high school, once home to as many as 2,000 students, now houses fewer than half that and is one of the most expensive schools to operate." Worse, a facilities committee report included in an evaluation by the engineering firm THA Architects Engineers of Flint called the landmark "a poor performer with many deficiencies including wood construction, narrow classrooms and poor building layout. Not great facility for investing future school funds."

But closing Central would not be easy. The majestic brick school on Crapo Street has a long history and is located in the heart of the cultural district. It has a lot more alumni who might fight to keep it open than Southwestern. Perhaps the Powers offer makes the decision on which high school to close a little easier for the school district. After all, school officials can argue that the city will actually make money by closing Southwestern and avoid the hassles that would come with shuttering a local icon like Central.

I'm left wondering if Powers didn't approach the district and get some positive feedback on the offer before going public with their desire to buy Southwestern. It would seem odd to just float this idea in the press without having some inkling of where the district stood on the proposal. Going even further, who's to say the district didn't approach Powers about the sale? Just thinking out loud.

Regardless of how it went down, the district's next move should be known in a month or two: "Superintendent Linda Thompson, who has called closing a high school 'really possible,' said in an e-mail that there will be no talk of school consolidations before her administration presents its budget proposal to the board," Longley wrote. "That proposal is still being put together and is expected in April or May."

UPDATE: The Flint Journal is now reporting that Powers is offering $5 million for Southwestern.