KSHB 41 reporter Olivia Acree covers portions of Johnson County, Kansas, including Olathe and Lenexa. She will continue to follow up on declining enrollment and school funding. If you have thoughts or concerns about your own school district, please reach out. Share your story idea with Olivia.
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As I’ve covered Shifting Education in Johnson County, parents and viewers have asked me questions about special education funding, declining enrollment, and where students are going as school populations shift. I worked to find answers to these questions.
Special education funding in Kansas is at the center of budget pressures facing Johnson County school districts. The state is required to reimburse districts at a rate of 92% for special education costs, but it is not meeting that obligation. As a result, general education funds are being redirected to cover the gap.
For Blue Valley Schools, that shortfall has led to program cuts and increased fees for families.
"Because funding special education isn't an option, the only options that we have are to reduce programming and also increase fees for families," Blue Valley Schools Superintendent Gillian Chapman said.
Some parents say those changes are affecting the reasons they chose the district.
"There are decisions that are being made that are going to take things away from the reason that we came to Blue Valley in the first place," Blue Valley mom Kate Blythe said.
Questions have also come in about where students are going as public school enrollment declines. One viewer raised concerns about changes in the Hispanic community, asking whether families may have moved out of the area. Shawnee Mission School District Superintendent Dr. Mike Schumacher said his district has seen shifts in its Hispanic student population.
"We asked our principals, hey, reach out to those families, try to find out what's happening… we heard a couple things. One was cost of living. The other was immigration concerns," Schumacher said.
Another viewer pointed to a rise in homeschooling as a factor in declining enrollment. De Soto USD 232 Superintendent Cory Gibson said tracking that movement is a challenge.
"It's a little bit difficult in the state of Kansas, because home school law looks quite different than other states where there's more of a tracking mechanism," Gibson said.
The Kansas Association of School Boards has reported that homeschool and private school numbers have increased, but those schools are not required to report enrollment data to the state, making it difficult to quantify the trend.
I will continue to cover these topics and would be happy to look into any questions or ideas you may have.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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