Warwick. School enrollment expected to be stable for the next 10 years

Warwick Valley School District Superintendent Dr. David Leach told the School Board at its regular monthly meeting earlier this month that he expects district enrollment to be stable over the next decade, which is “good news.”

Western Suffolk BOCES’ Office of School Planning and Research prepared the demographic study, which will enable the Warwick Valley School District to plan staffing, order books and supplies, and determine the use of its buildings.

Leach offered praise for the BOCES report: “Previous studies have been remarkably reliable.”

According to the WVCSD website: “Only small grade-level differences – between 1 and 15 students – were found when comparing projections to 2020 enrollments. Overall, WVCSD was anticipated to have 3,579 students for the 2020 school year, and 3,580 students are currently enrolled – a difference of less than one overall.”

While the district expects to see a loss of about 90-130 students a year, that loss should be offset by a “consistent influx of students in grades 1–8,” according to the district website.

Snow days

Frosty mornings and even a mini-snowstorm or two in October offer “early signs” of winter.

With more substantial snowfalls to come in mind, the district is taking a new approach to the issue of snow days: On days when the forecast is for “significant storms,” resulting in likely road hazards and/or power outages, the district will fully close.

Otherwise, Warwick will switch to remote learning.

Actual “snow days” will be called on a case-by-case basis, according to Leach.

- Abby Wolf