LANSING, Mich., (Michigan News Source) – In a state that has seen a steady decline in K-12 student enrollment since the 1970s, the Lansing School District said three years ago it was going to overcome that negative trend.

Benjamin Shuldiner, the superintendent the district hired in 2021 who attended Harvard and was plucked from New York City, told newspapers the goal was to have 11,500 students by 2025. That goal is still posted on the district’s website.

Recent enrollment numbers.

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This year, the district’s enrollment dropped from 10,229 in 2023-24 to 9,951, more than 1,500 students short of the goal.

Student enrollment is the life blood of public school districts in Michigan, where much of the school funding is determined on a per-pupil formula.

Lansing School District had 11,695 students just 10 years ago, but enrollment has dwindled over the years. The district had some increases, such as a jump of nine students in 2019-20 and then another increase of 142 students in 2020-21.

The decline of 278 students in 2024-25 was the steepest drop since 2020-21 when the pandemic hit and the district lost 630 students.

The impact of school choice.

Schools of choice hurt the district in 2024-25. For example, the city of Grand Ledge is about 12 miles from Lansing. But Grand Ledge drew 328 students from the Lansing area in 2024-25 while the Lansing School District only had nine students arrive from the Grand Ledge area this year.

The Lansing school district also lost 168 students to Bath and 142 students to DeWitt, which are more rural communities.

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Decades ago, the Lansing School District had four high schools. Now it is down to two. Eastern High School was sold by the district in 2016 to Sparrow Health System. The demolition of Eastern began this month.

The Lansing School District didn’t respond to an email seeking comment.