Wayne Township's enrollment has fallen to just under 15,000 students — and we project it will continue to decline. This isn't a reflection of anything our schools are doing wrong. It's demographics.

Marion County birth rates peaked between 2006 and 2009, producing the large graduating classes of 2024, 2025, 2026, and 2027. Then birth rates began to decline steadily in 2009, hitting a low point in 2020 and 2021 — which means we're now seeing historically small kindergarten classes arrive as those large senior classes graduate. The math is straightforward: big classes walking out the door, small classes walking in.

Unlike growing suburban districts, Wayne Township is a developed, urban community with limited housing and land available for new development. There are no new subdivisions on the horizon, or waves of incoming young families that come with them. 

This matters financially because the Education Fund, our largest funding bucket, is tied directly to enrollment. The state pays us per student, using a complex formula that takes into account total enrollment, student special needs, poverty levels, and other factors to calculate how much each district receives. Fewer students mean less money to pay for teacher salaries, benefits, and classroom supplies — the heart of what happens in every classroom, every day. 

A fair question is: if enrollment declines, shouldn't expenses decline too? Not necessarily. Losing a handful of students per classroom spread across 22 schools and programs doesn't automatically shrink your utility bills, bus routes, or building maintenance costs. Fixed costs don't flex that easily.

There is a bright spot: Wayne Township is a school of choice. Among public school students, more families from outside our boundaries choose Wayne than Wayne residents choose to leave. Indiana's school choice and voucher programs add another layer of complexity to these enrollment trends. But the fact remains: families see the value in our schools. They choose us. That is something to be proud of.

In recent years, unfunded state mandates have quietly eroded our budget in ways that are hard to plan for.

Here's a concrete example: Indiana legislators eliminated schools' ability to charge textbook fees. In the first year, they provided funding to cover that cost. Fair enough. Now in the third year, the replacement funding disappeared — but the $2.5 million expense did not.

Take summer school as another example. State law now requires that students who are at risk or do not pass IREAD-3 to attend summer school. This is a valuable program. We believe in it and want every student to succeed in reading. But summer school isn't free. It requires salaries, transportation, food service, and custodial service across multiple weeks. The state required it. 

In 2026, the state required us to increase our Teachers' Retirement Fund (TRF) contribution to 7.1% — roughly $350,000 we hadn't budgeted. In 2027, that requirement contribution jumps to 8.1%, adding another $700,000.

Our budget model looks 10 years out. The state budgets every 2 years. The federal government budgets every year. When rules change on a one and two-year cycle, ten-year plans take a hit — and there's no way to see it coming.

Our schools are subject to the same inflationary pressures as every family in Wayne Township. Food costs more. Gas costs more. Electricity costs more. Supplies cost more.

To put that in perspective: imagine your grocery bill if you served over 100,000 meals each week. Imagine your electricity bill for a one-million-square-foot building, roughly the size of Ben Davis High School. Imagine your fuel costs if you drove thousands of students to and from school every day in a bus.

And consider this: our teachers and staff are facing the same grocery bills and utility cost increases in their own homes. They deserve a raise. This year, they didn't get one. That's a hard truth we don't take lightly.