2018-19 brings a 10th year of significant growth to the District

Redmond, Wash. – Lake Washington School District’s (LWSD) official October 1 student enrollment was 29,987 students. This represents 417 more students than last year’s October 1 count.

For the last 10 years, from 2008 to 2018, the district’s enrollment grew by approximately 620 students each year. That is the size of a large elementary school. A total of 6,218 more students are in LWSD schools today than 10 years ago, representing 26 percent growth.

“Our enrollment growth is reflective of our thriving communities,” said Dr. Jane Stavem, Superintendent. “We are grateful for the support of our community as we strive to find solutions to support our rapidly growing student population.”

Enrollment growth is forecasted to continue. The district anticipates growing an additional 2,000 students in the next four years. These forecasts take into account the number of births in our area, current enrollment patterns and planned development within district borders.

LWSD is the third largest school district in Washington state, behind only Seattle and Spokane. The district is projected to be the second largest in the state within a few years.

The table below shows LWSD’s total enrollment for the past five years.

The chart below shows historical enrollment growth from 1998-99 through 2018-19:

LWSD students need additional space for student learning. Currently, LWSD relies heavily on portable classrooms to meet student space needs. There are 181 portable classrooms in the district, which is the equivalent of six elementary schools – 14 percent of the district’s overall capacity.

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Lake Washington School District is a high-performing public school district serving Kirkland, Redmond, and Sammamish, Washington. It is the third largest district in the state of Washington, with nearly 30,000 students in 54 schools.