http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/kcur/local-kcur-885513.mp3
Topeka, Kan. – With Kansas public schools mired in financial difficulties, new calculations show a rise in the number of children who need to be served .
State education officials are said to be shocked by the growth rate, calculated at more than double the number anticipated.
Enrollment increased by 61 hundred students this year. Deputy State Education Commissioner Dale Dennis took note of the figures as talks are underway debating whether to consolidate school districts to save multi millions of dollars.
Dennis links the numbers to an unstable economy with families moving in together to save money, others pulling children out of more expensive private schools. However, a Topeka Capital Journal study found private school principals saying enrollment had stabilized, financial aid requests on the rise.