Public schools that pushed masks, closures see enrollment decline

According to a recent survey, public schools where students were forced to wear masks saw declines in enrollment for the 2020-2022 school years, as did schools which were slow to re-open for in-person learning. 

County district schools with low mask usage throughout the pandemic have experienced a net 1.5% decline in enrollment, while schools with high mask usage have seen a 3.8% decrease in enrollment.  

Similarly, schools which were quick to re-open and offered more in-person learning saw a net decline of 1.1%, while schools with more remote learning saw a net 4.4% decline. 

Split along voting patterns, districts in counties that voted for Donald Trump saw a 1.9% decline in enrollment while the decline in counties that voted for Joe Biden doubled to 3.8%. 

Schools with high mask usage, more remote learning and in pro-Biden districts are continuing to bleed students, while their counterparts are continuing to rebound since 2021. 

All in all, nearly 1.3 million students have left public schools since the pandemic began. 

New York, the state with the worst enrollment, saw a 6.1% decline, followed by Oregon and Mississippi. Idaho, the Dakotas, Alabama and Utah saw net increases in enrollment. 

As public schools decline, homeschooling is on the rise. According to a report by the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools, homeschool rates more than doubled from 5.4% to 11% in March-September 2020 alone. 

Christa Kachurak is one mother who pulled her children out of public schools and into homeschool. She remembers the moment she and her husband Drew decided to homeschool their children.  

After 8-year-old Max was forced to learn at home due to school closures, Christa and Drew knew they had to start planning.  

“At that point, my husband and I sat down and we drew our lines in the sand as far as what it would look like if he were to return to public school, and our number one thing was we were not going to cover his face,” Christa told Yudi Sherman of America’s Frontline News. “We were not going to put a mask on him.”