The Chardon School District has recently implemented open enrollment for the 2013-2014 school year. Open enrollment was considered for a long time, and the final decision was made this summer. Open enrollment lifts the restrictions of who can come to the school based on location, so now, people from outside of Chardon can attend.

With each new student, the school receives more money, which can greatly help our academics, and multiple extra-curricular activities. On the negative side though, there is a chance that more students will leave than those who come in. Open enrollment can help to bring in large amounts of money for the school, and presents a convenience for many people. This opens up the door for people who have wanted their kids in the Chardon School System, but live outside of town, to come and join our schools. Of course, not everyone is accepted, but at the bare minimum it gives people the chance to get into Chardon Schools.

Not everything about open enrollment will be positive, though. Open enrollment can create a higher student to teacher ratio, which could increase teachers’ workload, and also have an effect on how much necessary individual attention each student is able to get. It can also help to create competition between schools, which can be viewed positively.

When I asked Mr. Mudridge about what he has observed about the impacts of open enrollment on the school he said, “It has had a mixed impact on the school.” He then went on to explain that there is some trial and error in trying to get new students in the proper classes and everyone properly situated. On the bright side, he said it gives students, coming from schools with fewer opportunities and programs, the chance to get involved in such things.

As for the impact open enrollment has had on the school statistically, the current number of students is 1039, which is down from last year’s number of 1150. This is not an effect of open enrollment. This year Chardon High School gained 75 new students, not all of which were open enrollment. Despite gaining these students our number of students dropped due to the fact that the incoming Freshman class is not as large as the outgoing Senior class was. Without the 75 new students, Chardon High School would have fallen below 1,000 students. The current student to teacher ratio is 17:1. So as you can see  the school has not changed too dramatically due to open enrollment. Open enrollment is ultimately a positive influence and should continue to be. This was a good move on the School Board’s part.