In another sign that the pandemic is waning, registrations for Austin ISD pre-K and kindergarten have already doubled what they were last spring.

Why it matters: The district saw the largest decrease in enrollment among pre-K and kindergarten through the pandemic, and this accounted for a large portion of the district failing to meet enrollment expectations.

• In October 2021 (two months after the first day of school), we were about 1,500 students short of our 10,472 projection in pre-K and kindergarten for the 2021-22 school year.

By the numbers: Last Wednesday’s Early Learning Day brought in 858 elementary student registrations, and overall the numbers are even better.

• Pre-K registrations are up 188% compared to 2021.
• Kindergarten registrations are up 123% over the same period.
• That adds up to 2,339 additional students.

What they’re saying: “What these numbers tell me is that there is a pent-up demand in Austin coming out of the pandemic for our high-quality pre-K and kindergarten options,” said district enrollment executive director, Alejandro Delgado.

Driving the news: The district kicked off a district-wide registration campaign with elementary campuses hosting Early Learning Day. We’re encouraging all of our current families to register for the next school year by the end of May.

• Families with children ages 3-6 took campus tours, met principals and teachers, and registered for the upcoming school year. 
• The district is also making a big marketing push for pre-K that includes bus ads and this video.

Dive deeper: The top five campuses with the most registrations on Early Learning Day were Summit (41), Baldwin (31), Barrington (26), Padron (27), and Pickle (25).

The big picture: Preliminary registration numbers render optimism for next year’s enrollment in the grade levels we came short of during the pandemic.

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