CPS enrollment stabilizes after years of decline

Chicago Public Schools (CPS) enrollment has stabilized, following a 12-year-long decline with a 20% shrinkage in the district’s student body, according to Crain’s. CPS saw its last bump in enrollment during the 2011-12 school year, when numbers increased from 402,681 to 404,151 students, according to data from Chalkbeat.

Thinning Chicago Public Schools enrollment has been driven by factors including lower birth rates, population changes, and the onset of the pandemic. Over 33,000 students have left the district since the fall 2020, while Chicago’s overall population slightly increased between 2010 and 2020, according to the 2020 census. 

Declining enrollment numbers have previously created challenges for city and CPS officials when determining appropriate classroom funding, particularly as student needs have increased during the pandemic. Funding for a district is largely determined by enrollment, a system which has been brought into question in recent years.

State funding increases and pandemic recovery money have helped offset enrollment declines. The current Chicago Public Schools budget sits at $9.4 billion, up from $6 billion a decade ago.