Long Term Planning FAQs

There are two types of enrollment: Headcount and Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) enrollment. Headcount counts individual students, regardless of whether they are full-time or part-time. FTE reflects how fully enrolled a student is and is used to calculate state education funding. Other factors can alter state funding, such as students' grade levels and whether they receive special education or supplementary services.

Sources: OSPI Enrollment Reporting; 2025-26 S-275 Personnel Reporting Handbook; OSPI's K-3 Compliance FAQ

We are serving fewer students while continuing to operate the same number of schools. OSD’s October K-12 headcount declined from 10,014 (9,716 FTE) students in 2019-20 to 9,448 (8,920 FTE) in 2025-26. BERK Consulting projects student enrollment headcount declining to 8,483 by 2033-34. State funding is directly tied to the number of students served rather than the number of buildings operated. As enrollment declines, maintaining the same number of schools spreads building, staffing and operating costs across fewer students, making it more difficult to sustain programs and services over time.

Sources: OSD Enrollment Data Dashboard; BERK Long-Term Enrollment Forecast; Long-Term Planning; Comparison of OSD Costs to State Funding

Olympia School District has experienced a sustained decline in enrollment, and current projections indicate that trend will continue. Enrollment peaked in 2019-20 at an annual average of 9,672 student FTE. Since then, we have declined by about 799 students and project to continue declining by an annual average of -66 FTE over the next four years. The most significant declines are in grades K-5, at -16.5%; secondary grades saw declines between 1% and 2%.

Birth rates and the number of school-age children in the community have declined, making a significant near-term rebound unlikely. At the same time, the district has successfully worked to attract and retain students through expanded early learning opportunities, marketing, changes to the transfer process and other enrollment initiatives. While the District’s efforts to recruit out-of-district students have been successful and have helped offset some enrollment loss, those gains are insufficient to overcome the larger demographic decline already underway and projected to continue.

Sources: OSD Enrollment Trends & Forecast informational packet; OSD Enrollment Data Dashboard; BERK Long-Term Enrollment Forecast

Compared with similarly sized districts—and with our closest neighbors—Olympia operates more schools with fewer students in each building. In 2025-26, OSD’s 11 elementary schools average about 319 students, compared with approximately 447 in Tumwater, 524 in North Thurston, and 449 across comparable Washington State school districts.

Sources: Elementary school enrollment comparison; Middle school enrollment comparison; OSD School Capacity Worksheet; Comparison of Olympia Costs to State Funding

Schools are being considered for closure or consolidation based on multiple factors. The district is building on the methodology developed during the 2023 School Facility Efficiency Study and Citizens Advisory Committee process, which evaluated every elementary and middle school using the same weighted criteria, including school utilization, school size, socioeconomic factors, the ability to combine attendance areas, facility condition, prior capital investment, future development potential and walkability. That analysis identified a group of schools facing the greatest long-term efficiency challenges, and the District is now revisiting that work using three additional years of enrollment, capacity, staffing, and facilities data.

The final recommendation will consider the requirements of Board Policy 6883, including impacts on students and staff, transportation, educational programs, financial considerations, facility condition and potential renovation, and possible future uses of a school property.

Sources: 2023 School Closure-Consolidation Candidate Process; OSD School Capacity Worksheet; BERK Long-Term Enrollment Forecast; Long Range Facilities Master Plan; Board Policy 6883

As part of the district’s broader long-term planning work, Superintendent Murphy plans to present a recommendation to the School Board on September 17, 2026, which is expected to identify specific schools recommended for closure and consolidation. The School Board is scheduled to vote on that recommendation on November 12, 2026.

For any school proposed for closure, Board Policy 6883 requires a public written analysis and public hearings (tentatively scheduled for October 2026) during the 90 days before a final decision, including a separate hearing for each school proposed for closure. A hearing cannot occur until at least 10 business days after the written analysis is made public.

In addition to the hearings, families, students, staff and community members may also provide public comment at Board meetings, email district leaders and follow the Long-Term Planning webpage for updates on this process and the district’s broader long-term planning work.

Sources: OSD School Consolidation Timeline; August 13, 2026 School Board discussion; Board Policy 6883; Long-Term Planning

We have used multiple strategies. Since 2023, we have made approximately $7 million, $1.3 million, $364,000 and, most recently, $3.5 million in successive annual budget reductions. The 2026-27 budget included a reduction of 29.5 FTE. Many of these reductions have been weighted toward the district office and central services. In 2024-25, central administration represented 4.88% of OSD expenditures, compared with a statewide average of 6.31%.

Central administration as a share of expenditures
Olympia School District actuals and budgets, 2017-18 through 2026-27.

Olympia also compares favorably with surrounding districts. Using the same state-reported financial data for 2024-25:

Please Note: Our school year 2025-26 financials will not be available until December 2026.

We have also expanded early learning, updated our transfer process, advocated for additional state funding and examined attendance boundaries. BERK’s May 2026 Boundary Study found that targeted boundary changes could improve student proximity but would not significantly improve enrollment balance or staffing and operational efficiency, as enrollment is declining across the district.

Sources: OSD Budget; OSD Boundary Study Report (May 2026)

School consolidation should allow the district to use its existing staffing more effectively. With larger and more balanced grade-level cohorts, receiving schools would likely have fewer split-grade or combination classrooms and greater flexibility in creating balanced class sections.

Just as importantly, the operational and staffing savings generated by operating fewer buildings could allow the district to maintain stable class sizes rather than relying on class-size increases as a future budget-reduction strategy.

Consolidation can also strengthen programs and student supports by concentrating resources that are currently spread across multiple smaller schools. For example, specialist positions that may currently be divided among buildings could be assigned full-time to a school, providing students and staff with greater consistency and access. The same principle applies to counseling, special education, intervention, library, and other student supports: aligning the number of schools we operate with our enrollment gives the district a better opportunity to preserve and strengthen these services rather than continuing to spread limited staffing and resources across more buildings than enrollment supports.

A cost illustration planned for discussion with the School Board on August 27, looks at an example of two 240-student schools combining into one 480-student school. In that example, total annual costs decline by approximately $1.13 million, or $2,355 per student, through reductions in duplicated staffing, building operations, utilities and other costs.

This example is intended to illustrate the types of efficiencies that may result from consolidation. It is not a proposal for any specific OSD schools.

Source: August 27, 2026 School Board Long-Term Planning Agenda Item

Staffing assignments and allocations (including school administrators) are implemented based on enrollment and in accordance with published staffing allocations and applicable collective bargaining agreements. Student-driven positions would generally be reassigned based on where students are served, while some positions associated with operating a separate school building will be reduced. Human Resources works with affected employees and labor partners through that process.

Source: OSD Budget - current staffing allocation documents

Supporting students and families through the transition is a major focus of the district’s work. Families will receive clear and regular communication about timelines, attendance boundaries, transportation, staffing and what to expect at their new school. Transition teams will help determine the most effective ways to create ongoing feedback loops with families, ensuring they have meaningful opportunities to ask questions, share concerns, provide input and help shape the transition process.

Receiving schools will hold family nights, student orientations, tours or other activities designed to help students and families become familiar with their new school community before the first day of school. Particular attention will be given to students who may need additional support during a transition, including students receiving special education, multilingual, counseling, behavioral health or other services. The goal is to bring school communities together, not simply move students from one building to another, while providing families as much information, preparation and continuity as possible throughout the process.

Source: OSD school consolidation transition roadmap (informed by Hanover Research)

If a school facility is closed, the district would have several options for its future, including selling the property, leasing it to another organization or retaining it for another district or community-serving use. The district has begun exploring potential opportunities and partnerships. In considering these options, the district weighs financial and operational impacts, opportunities to continue serving children, families, and the community, and the value of maintaining long-term flexibility. Retaining ownership through a lease or alternative district use could reduce ongoing operating costs, potentially generate revenue, and preserve the ability to use the property again for educational purposes should enrollment and demographic conditions change significantly in the future.

Bond planning is separate from consolidation, but knowing our long-term school configuration helps determine where major facility investments are most appropriate. Our Long Range Facilities Master Plan identifies needs and opportunities across district facilities, while the Bond Planning Committee is evaluating potential projects for a future bond measure.

Sources: Board Policy 6883; Long Range Facilities Master Plan; RCW 28A.335.060; RCW 28A.335.130