EAST HELENA — East Helena High School's enrollment has surpassed 2,000 students for the first time.
“It is a big number and we are up at least 50 to 60 students from where we ended the year last year,” said Superintendent for East Helena Schools, Dan Rispens.
(WATCH: East Helena schools see a surge in student enrollment)
Because of this significant increase, the high school currently has a floating teacher who instructs in other classrooms during planning periods.
Rispens says, “That’s just a sign we are getting to a point where we are starting to feel the pressure of increased enrollment.”
Rispens says this is evident in middle school and elementary school.
The district believes a COVID baby boom and homeschooled kids going back to public school are factors in the population growth.
“Classrooms are more full, and you talk to teachers in any of the schools and they will tell you they have a larger class than in years past,” Rispens shared.
Currently, around forty students from East Helena attend Helena Public Schools.
“There is a possibility that those East Helena kids may decide they want to go to school in regular school areas and come back,” Rispens said. “As our resident students, we have to enroll them, and that could bump the enrollment in the high school by 40 students, which would just add to the crowding.”
Also, with new housing developments and businesses coming to the East Helena community, the district has completed in-depth planning with architects about expanding facilities and is prepared to make more room if needed.
Rispens says, “We are always looking a few years down the road at what to expect.”
