Ozark County school enrollment still strong

When the covid pandemic began in 2020, Ozark County schools saw a surge in enrollment as families relocated to the quiet hills of Ozark County from other places across the country. Now, four years later, it seems as if the new families are here to stay, as the enrollment increase is holding steady or increasing at all of Ozark County schools.

Bakersfield School: 420 students

Bakersfield School’s enrollment this year clocks in at 420 students.

“It has fluctuated over the past two to three years between 404 and 429,” Bakersfield Superintendent Amy Padgett said. “Since we went to the four-day school week in the 2018-19 school year, our attendance has been over 400 and remained there since that time. Before the 2018-19 year, we fluctuated between 365-387.”

In addition to families moving into the area, Padgett says she thinks there are some other factors that have come into play:

• Bakersfield School’s addition of courses and programs including the following classes: BioMed, Bible history, leadership and citizenship, coding, robotics, dual credit and the school’s online learning lab. The school has also added a few extra curricular programs that have been popular with students including volleyball, golf and eSports.

• Padgett says Bakersfield’s reputation for having a supportive community and great school that is growing and adding supports for kids and families has also been attractive to new students. She said the new Baxter Health Clinic, a partnership with Head Start on campus, a preschool expansion and grant staff to assist with post high school planning (RootEd) have been implemented in recent years.

• An increase in the number of available rental properties and RV sites in the Bakersfield area. 

“We are blessed to have a supportive community and professional staff who want the best for our kids and this community,” she said. 

Gainesville School: 603 students

Gainesville High School Principal Richard Wylie said that for the 2024-25 school year, Gainesville School District’s enrollment in kindergarten through 12th grades is 603 students. Wylie gave these enrollment number for the past several years:

2023-24: 601 students;

2022-23: 611 students;

2021-22: 575 students;

2020-21: 590 students;

2019-20: 621 students.

The enrollment numbers listed above do not include the on-campus HeadStart or Pre-K enrollments, Wylie said. 

Lutie School: 130 students

Lutie Superintendent Kathalee Cole says their district has a current enrollment of 130 students, which is up 20 students from the previous year, and added, “Our enrollment has increased steadily every school year.”

Thornfield School: 48

Thornfield School, a kindergarten through eighth grade school, has had an overall increasing enrollment since 2021, according to Thornfield School Principal Melissa Campbell. She says she attributes at least some of the growth to families moving to Ozark County from other areas of the country. 

Thornfield has seen these enrollment numbers over the last several years:

2024-25: 48 students;

2023-24: 52 students;

2022-23: 49 students;

2021-22: 39 students;

2020-21: 32 students;

2019-20: 38 students.

Editor’s note: Information about Dora School’s enrollment was not available to the Times at presstime Tuesday.