2019-20 brings an 11th year of significant growth to the District

Redmond, Wash. – Lake Washington School District’s (LWSD) official October 1 student enrollment was 31,106 students. This represents 1,124 more students than last year’s October 1 count. LWSD is now the second-largest district in the state, behind only Seattle Public Schools. 

For the last 11 years, from 2008 to 2019, the district’s enrollment grew by an average of 667 students each year. That is the size of a large elementary school. A total of 7,339 more students are in LWSD schools today than 11 years ago, representing 31 percent growth.

“Our enrollment growth is reflective of our dynamic communities,” said Dr. Jane Stavem, Superintendent. “We are grateful for the ongoing support of our entire school district community as we continue to address the needs related to our rapidly growing student population. The growth of our school district presents unique challenges and opportunities as we address current over-crowding and future expansion possibilities.”

Enrollment growth is forecasted to continue. The district anticipates that it will grow by approximately 2,000 students in the next four years. These forecasts include the number of births in our area, current enrollment patterns and planned development within district borders. 

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

The chart below shows historical enrollment growth from 1998-99 through 2019-20:

 
LWSD students need additional space for student learning. Currently, LWSD relies heavily on portable classrooms to meet student space needs. There are 160 portable classrooms in the district, which is the equivalent of five elementary schools or 10 percent of the district’s overall capacity. 

###

Lake Washington School District is a high-performing public school district serving Kirkland, Redmond, and Sammamish, Washington. It is the second-largest district in the state of Washington, with over 31,100 students in 56 schools.