Concord School District sees spike in CRTC applications, drop in AP course enrollment

The number of students at Concord High School at the Concord Regional Technical Center is on track to increase next year, but the numbers show fewer students are planning to take advanced classes, following a difficult year for academic learning.

In a Concord School Board meeting Wednesday, Concord High School principal Mike Reardon and Concord Regional Technical Center (CRTC) director Steve Rothenberg presented enrollment data to the board.

District data projects there will be 1,530 students enrolled at Concord High in the 2021-2022 school year, an increase of 19 students from this school year, with 1,511 students. Some of that is due to an influx of first-years entering from the middle school, but it’s also because some students may not leave.

Reardon anticipates that 24 CHS seniors won’t graduate, causing an increase in the projected number of enrolled seniors for next year.

“Obviously we’re hoping we can get all of those kids through at the end of the year, but that’s what we know right now,” Reardon said.

At the beginning of this school year, Concord High lost 38 students who switched to private school. Last month, Reardon said 23 of the 24 students who responded to inquiries from the district, said they plan to stay in private school and not return.

An analysis of course requests made for next year, shows that enrollment is up for art courses this year, but down in music, world language and science courses. Requests to enroll in art courses increased by 110 students from 783 to 893 this year, but enrollment in music courses decreased by 120 students, from 570 to 450. Enrollment in science courses decreased by 86 students from 2,209 to 2,023 and enrollment in world languages decreased by 60 students from 831 to 771.

Reardon attributes the decrease of interest in music and languages to the fact that they are “performance-based” subjects that work better face-to-face.

“Not being able to participate directly in the experiences, I think the classroom dynamic…is huge,” Reardon said. “Having to take those classes via Zoom I think has really put a crimp in some students’ willingness to stick with this.”

Reardon also said Advanced Placement (AP) course enrollment is down across the board, for reasons he attributes to high-achieving students leaving the district for private school, and the academic challenges of the last school year.

“I think that given the rigors of this year, both in emotional stress and, frankly, learning that didn’t take place anywhere near to the extent that it would in a normal year, I think that some of our kids do not feel as ready to tackle an AP class as normal,” Reardon said.

CRTC applicationsskyrocket

CRTC enrollment is expected to rise next year, as Rothenberg said the center has received more applications this year than ever before in the center’s 40-year history, despite not offering prospective student tours due to the pandemic.

“As director, I was very nervous about what our numbers would look like this year,” Rothenberg said “Instead, we have our highest recruitment of all time.”

The center has received 889 requests to join next year, far surpassing its target enrollment of 707. In particular, the trade programs, including automotive technology and construction, have 215 requests to join, compared to the target enrollment of 164. Human services programs, including emergency services and criminal justice, have 383 requests to join, compared to the target enrollment of 285.

Reardon also discussed potential summer programs – academic sessions, but also a non-academic social-emotional summer class – to help get students up to speed after what he called a “lost year,” where many students were not engaged in their learning. Administrators are weighting the need to get kids caught up after a difficult year in school, with a need for burned-out teachers to get some time off.

To help student engagement, board member Brenda Hastings suggested taking some of the district’s most popular classes, like the outdoor ropes and climbing course and the cooking courses, and offering more sections to get kids excited about school again, an idea Reardon called “terrific.”

“The ropes course is kind of a model for what I’m talking about with this ‘non-academic’ class,” Reardon said. “Of just getting kids building up their self confidence, being outdoors, working with our teachers and just getting back into the swing of being a kid and getting back into the fall.”