Schools in the Tampa Bay area are seeing fewer students in their classrooms than last year, according to districts' preliminary 10-day counts.
While districts expected the drop in enrollment, some experienced a larger decline than anticipated, which could mean a hit to school budgets.
Various factors are contributing to enrollment declines across the nation, including a falling birth rate and education options outside of the traditional public school.
For years, more students have flocked to charter schools, including in the Tampa Bay region.
And an expansion of the state's private school voucher program has made it easier for families to choose private or home school options.
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"A large part of the challenge is this continued attempt to make it harder and harder for public schools to meet the needs of our students," said Andrew Spar, president of the Florida Education Association.
Each district also faces its own unique challenges, such as population shifts.
The official enrollment counts for the school year aren't finalized until mid-October. But here's a look at the numbers so far:
Hillsborough
In the region's largest district, enrollment fell by about 8,000 students from 220,563 last year to 212,207 in this year's 10-day count.
Drops were seen across traditional public schools, charters, virtual school and in juvenile detention centers.
When looking just at traditional public schools, enrollment dropped from 184,513 to 177,336.
In recent years, Hillsborough County has become a hub for home schooling.
Enrollment loss and population shifts in the past have led the district to close some of its campuses, a process that is disruptive to families that rely on their neighborhood schools.
Pinellas
The Pinellas school district saw its student population decline from 77,854 to 74,203, a steeper drop than what was expected, said Lee Bryant, the president of the Pinellas Classroom Teachers Association.
Initial predictions were closer to 3,000.
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"We're actually having more of a student loss than we anticipated, which means we'll have even less money coming into the county," said Bryant, "The less money we have, the harder it is to keep our teachers employed."
District officials point to a lower birthrate and the high cost of living in Pinellas County.
"It's so expensive to live in Pinellas County that families, or people who would have a family, don't want to live here," Bryant said. "They will, quite often, even live in a different county and commute into Pinellas County."
The number of elementary school students decreased the most, falling by 6.1%.
Kindergarten saw the sharpest drop with 9.3%.
Middle schooler enrollment decreased by 3.6% and high school by 3.7%.
Pasco
Pasco County Schools saw 787 fewer students than last year.
Total enrollment stands at about 84,300.
In line with larger trends, elementary school enrollment saw the biggest decline of 3,115.
Middle school enrollment declined by 1,179.
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Meanwhile, high school enrollment bucked the trend, increasing by 459 students.
K-8 enrollment also rose by 3,130, as more families start to choose that model.
Charter schools in the county also experienced growth, with 900 more students this year so far.
A district spokesperson said the east side of the county is experiencing rapid growth, while the west side is seeing enrollment declines.
"These shifts mirror population changes in the county and reinforce the need for new facilities in high-growth areas, alongside right-sizing efforts where numbers are falling in West Pasco," read the district statement.
Hernando
Hernando's student count stands at 22,567.
It's about 50 fewer than initial projections, and about 260 less from last year's 10-day count.
A district spokesperson said their K-5 grades have shown a decrease in enrollment. High school is showing increases and middle is remaining close to unchanged.
Charter schools have also shown close to neutral enrollment.
Polk
Polk County Schools saw 319 fewer students in this year's 10-day count.
Enrollment declined from 114,946 to 114,627.
Traditional public schools saw a decrease, while charter schools experienced growth.
Enrollment in public schools dipped from 94,752 to 93,783.
The charter school student population jumped from 20,194 to 20,844.
WUSF reached out to Sarasota and Manatee County schools for enrollment numbers but did not receive a response in time for publication.
