County schools report on out-of-district students
Each of the three school districts in Jackson County are welcoming out-of-district students, many of them coming from districts within the county, thanks to a “school choice” law passed by Kansas lawmakers last year.
That includes more than 95 students who previously attended Holton schools, who are attending classes this year in the Jackson Heights and Royal Valley school districts, according to numbers provided by superintendents from each of the schools.
Total student counts will be finalized on Sept. 20, the annual “count date” for Kansas schools. A total of 12 students from the Jackson Heights are attending schools elsewhere in the county, and 18 students from the Royal Valley district are attending other schools this year.
Transfers between districts were allowed by House Bill 2567, approved by Kansas lawmakers in the spring of 2023. The bill required all state school districts to set policies determining how much room they have for out-of-district students by the end of 2023, and students could apply to transfer to another school district starting this past June, it was reported.
Jackson Heights USD 335 superintendent Jim Howard said his district has welcomed 93 new students from outside the district this year, the vast majority of which — 65 — have transferred from Holton USD 336. The total also includes 18 students from Royal Valley USD 337, five from Vermillion USD 380 and two each from Onaga USD 322, South Brown County USD 430, Perry-Lecompton USD 343 and Topeka USD 501.
Howard also noted that the district’s enrollment has grown by more than 100, those being students from Wetmore who were welcomed into the district last year after Prairie Hills USD 113 voted to close Wetmore Attendance Center in early 2023. The Wetmore school’s closure was followed by the transfer of land from Prairie Hills into the Jackson Heights district, it was reported.
In Holton, superintendent Trevor Ashcraft said the district welcomed 16 new non-resident students this year, including eight from Jackson Heights, three from Topeka and five from Atchison County USD 377. Ashcraft also noted that all 115 out-of-district students from last year are back as well, although those numbers may fluctuate prior to Sept. 20.
In the Royal Valley district, superintendent Aaric Davis noted a total of 101 out-of-district students this year, including 31 from Holton, 20 each from Kaw Valley USD 321 and Topeka-Seaman USD 345. The rest for this year include 14 transfers from Topeka, five from Silver Lake USD 372, four from Jackson Heights, three from Shawnee Heights USD 450, two from Jefferson West USD 340 and one each from South Brown County and Wamego USD 320.
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