POULSBO — More North Kitsap families are sending their children to schools in other districts, and inside the district, Kingston High School is losing far more students to North Kitsap High School than it gains.
A student transfer report going to the North Kitsap School Board on Thursday, Nov. 12, shows 576 students who live in the North Kitsap School District have approved transfers to attend school elsewhere this year, up from 555 last year. Only 129 students from other districts transferred in, up from 116, leaving the district with a net loss of 447 students, compared with 439 last year.
The report is a management update, and no board action is scheduled.
Where they go
Bainbridge Island School District takes the most North Kitsap students: 233 this year, up from 207. Central Kitsap held steady at 192. Together the two districts receive 74% of North Kitsap’s outgoing transfers.
Not all of those students sit in a classroom on another campus. Of the 576, 359 attend in person and 217 are enrolled in online or alternative programs, such as Bainbridge’s Mosaic, Odyssey and Eagle Harbor programs, Central Kitsap’s Barker Creek, Quilcene’s PEARL program and statewide online schools. Quilcene’s PEARL drew 46 students, all online, and 87 attend programs elsewhere in the state, 81 of them online. Bremerton took 12, South Kitsap four and Chimacum two.
Families most often cite proximity and employment (36%), program or academic choice (32%), or educational or hardship reasons (31%). The most common single reasons were that a student’s “educational condition would improve” (122 students), a school closer to a parent’s work (97) and an alternative program (83).
Middle school transfers out grew the most, from 114 to 131. Elementary transfers rose from 241 to 249, and high school transfers dipped from 200 to 196. High schoolers cite online programs more than students at any other level, according to the report.
This year’s 576 is slightly above the 10-year average of about 564. The peak was 682 in 2020-21, during remote learning.
Who comes in
Of the 129 students transferring in, 61 come from Central Kitsap, 34 from Chimacum, 24 from Bremerton and 10 from other districts. The total ends a two-year dip and is near the 10-year average of 135.
Most incoming families (64%) cite proximity and employment. Having a parent who works for North Kitsap is now the top single reason, at 31 students, up from 23. North Kitsap High enrolls the most transfer students, 37, followed by Poulsbo Middle and Vinland Elementary with 20 each.
Kingston to Poulsbo
Transfers between North Kitsap’s own schools reached 276 students this year, up from 224 and the most since 2021-22.
The largest flow is at the high school level: 101 students who live in Kingston High’s attendance area attend North Kitsap High in Poulsbo, while 22 students from North Kitsap High’s area attend Kingston High. That is a net loss of 79 students for Kingston High. At the middle school level, 32 students from Kingston Middle’s area attend Poulsbo Middle, and eight go the other way.
Most of the 276 in-district transfers are renewals of earlier approvals (142). Another 50 students have a parent who works for the district, 14 are continuing on a feeder path and 12 have a sibling at the school. The remaining 58 were approved for a family’s own reasons, such as parents’ work, child care or home location, or a social fresh start.
Among elementary schools, Wolfle gained the most, with 39 students arriving and 14 leaving. Richard Gordon Elementary lost the most, with 36 students who live in its area attending elsewhere, 22 of them at Wolfle, and eight arriving. Gordon, Poulsbo Elementary and Vinland are closed to new in-district transfer requests, except for staff children, siblings, renewals and students on a feeder path.
Why it matters
Each student who enrolls elsewhere takes state funding with them. The numbers also come as the board works on a 20-year facilities plan. At its Oct. 15 meeting, the board agreed to keep gathering information and costs for modular buildings at two sites and noted that new attendance boundaries would be needed, according to the meeting minutes.
The board meets at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 12, in the boardroom at the Student Support Center, 18360 Caldart Ave. NE, Poulsbo, and online via Zoom; the link is on the agenda at nkschools.org. People who want to speak must sign up on a form that opens at 4 p.m. and closes at 5:25 p.m. the day of the meeting. Written comments can be emailed to khenry@nkschools.org within 24 hours of the meeting.
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