Framingham Public School Enrollment Sees Slight Dip

FRAMINGHAM - Framingham Public Schools’ (FPS) student enrollment numbers are down slightly in the 2024-25 school year compared to the prior year, according to statistics submitted to the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE).

Framingham School Superintendent Dr. Robert Tremblay spoke about the report during the School Committee’s meeting on Thursday, January 9.

The enrollment numbers essentially act as a snapshot of students who were present in the school system on October 1 of each year. A January 3 memo outlining the data from October 1, 2024 shows that FPS enrollment has decreased by 10, or .11%.

A total of 9,124 students were enrolled across the Framingham school system as of this past October, compared to the 9,134 students that were recorded on October 1, 2023 as well as the 9,274 students accounted for on October 1, 2022.

The elementary school level saw the biggest decrease over the past year, as 49 fewer students were enrolled compared to the 2023 report. High school and preschool enrollment both saw 11 fewer students in the new report. Middle school enrollment, meanwhile, grew by 61 students since October 1, 2023.

According to the report submitted to DESE, about 62% of the students withdrawn from FPS transferred to another public school within Massachusetts, while nearly 17% moved to a school outside of the state and close to 9% transferred to an in-state private school.

Tremblay told the School Committee on January 9 that the most recent report is consistent with what is seen across Massachusetts and the nation as a whole. He added that the school district did see some new students enter, representing a “churn.” With that, Tremblay said that the school district is not anticipating an increase in funding through Chapter 70, the primary source of state aid for public schools.

“It’s one of those double-edged swords, of course: the more students you have, the more Chapter 70 revenue,” Tremblay continued.

“Of course, the larger the class sizes, the more the demand on services. So, there is that sort of give and take to this.”

FPS received about $86 million in Chapter 70 funding for the 2025 fiscal year, representing about half of the roughly $172.6 million operating budget approved by Mayor Charlie Sisitsky and the City Council back in June.

Tremblay noted some anecdotal factors as to why enrollment has dipped, including dissatisfaction with the education within the city, housing availability and affordability, along with new jobs for parents and caretakers that prompt relocation. Tremblay said that not every family who has children leaving the district offer detailed reasoning behind their decision.

District 4 School Committee member Adam Freudberg asked why the report featured enrollment numbers for the Juniper Hill School, but not figures on satellite pre-K sites in the city, such as the MetroWest YMCA Early Learning Center and programs at Framingham State University. Executive Director of Finance and Operations for Framingham Public Schools Lincoln Lynch explained that since FPS staff members are not present at those sites, DESE does not count those students in their Chapter 70 calculations. Still, Freudberg expressed curiosity about what the numbers for pre-K enrollment would look like with those satellite programs accounted for.

“In my mind, I treat all of these sites as equals in a way,” Freudberg said.

“Even if they’re not official government buildings, they’re still our kids, they’re our resources, our grants, our oversight."

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