Dena Levitz, The Examiner
2007-09-15 16:08:46.0
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Three weeks after the start of school, the number of students enrolled in D.C. Public Schools is more than 6,000 below last year's count and 2,000 less than the total enrolled just before Labor Day, according to officials.

Mafara Hobson, spokeswoman for Chancellor Michelle Rhee, told The Examiner that as of Friday afternoon, 49,259 pupils were registered for classes, a dramatic drop from last October's official tally of 55,355.

Rhee had predicted that after Labor Day student enrollment would rise as families returned home from vacations, but the latest figures show that the opposite has happened.

Hobson said she could not explain the decrease.

D.C. schools officials must report final enrollment numbers to the federal government during the first week of October. That figure is critical in determining the funding levels for D.C.

Hobson said the schools expect enrollment statistics "will level" by that time.

Two weeks ago, when school had been in session for five days, enrollment was 51,289 students. Since that time, the school system's counts show that enrollment has fallen or stayed virtually the same every day.

For instance, the day after Labor Day, enrollment was 50,098. By Sept. 11, that number had slipped to 49,598 students.

Hobson said school leaders believe one reason for lower registration numbers is that parents who are in the United States illegally are not registering their children out of fear they will get in trouble with immigration officials.

But school officials said they could not explain why significant numbers of children who had already registered appeared to be leaving the school system.

To address the issue of illegal immigrants, there will be a public-information push starting next week to encourage everyone to enroll their children, regardless of their residency status, she said.

"A lot of people think that IDs need to be photocopied, but they just need to be shown," she said. "We're really trying to target this problem."

To register a student for D.C. public schools, parents can show any one of the following items:

¯ a pay stub within the past 45 days

¯ supplemental security income annual benefits notification

¯ a tax information authorization waiver form

¯ a military housing orders and residency verification letter

¯ an embassy letter

¯ official documentation of financial assistance from D.C. government, or

¯ proof that the child is a ward of D.C., in the form of a court order.

dlevitz@dcexaminer.com