School Districts Accommodate Increased Enrollment
As students settle into the new school year, one district is accommodating an influx of students.
The Socorro Independent School District is having to deal with more students this year. It is something they said they’re proud of and anticipated.
Wednesday afternoon, hundreds of freshmen crowded the halls of the new Eastlake High School in far east El Paso county, excited the day was over and eager for the school’s first football game.
District officials were enthusiastic about something else: enrollment.
“We may be able to play a bigger role in how we approach public education,” said SISD superintendent Xavier De La Torre.
He said enrollment has gone up about 1,300 students this year compared to last year.
A spokeswoman for the Ysleta Independent School District said compared to this time last year, enrollment is down about 1,200 students.
For the El Paso Independent School District, a spokeswoman said enrollment is about the same.
De La Torre said there are a number of reasons why there are so many more students this year, including natural growth, Fort Bliss, the violence in Juarez and the economy.
“People tend to — when they relocate — to look for parts of the country where the cost of living is still reasonable, and I think El Paso certainly fits that bill. There are certainly a lot of employment opportunities in El Paso, at least middle class employment opportunities,” De La Torre said.
He also explained that the growth was anticipated, so the district hasn’t had any major issues with overcrowding.
For that, parents said the district deserves a good grade.
“We’re real fortunate my daughter got to go to Eastlake because this is an outstanding school,” said Susan Zubia.
“The enrollment going up, it’s going to happen and the beautiful school we have here is just helping to accommodate all the kids, so it’s great,” said Velsa Mora who has a child enrolled at Eastlake High School and is also the administrative assistant there.
The enrollment numbers are preliminary and could change since it is the beginning of the school year.
