Wine Country Times

In the 2023-24 school year, kindergarten was the largest grade in Middletown Unified School District, with 156 students making up 9% of the student body, according to the California Department of Education. This represents no change compared to the previous year.

The grade with the second highest number of students was second grade, with 149 students, or 8.6% of the student body.

The school that had the highest number of kindergarten students in Middletown Unified School District during the period was Coyote Valley Elementary School, while Cobb Mountain Elementary School had the fewest.

Overall, Middletown Unified School District enrolled 1,728 students, ranking as the 477th lowest enrolled district in California for the 2023-24 school year. It ranked 470th lowest in the previous school year.

California's public schools face a growing financial crisis driven by declining enrollment and an increase in chronic absenteeism, both impacting the state's school funding model.

Enrollment, which peaked at 6.3 million students in the early 2000s, has steadily declined to under 6 million today, with projections indicating it could fall below 5.2 million by 2032. This trend is attributed to lower birth rates, slowed immigration, and families relocating out of state due to high housing costs. Rural and coastal districts have been particularly affected, facing tough decisions such as school closures and staffing reductions.

At the same time, chronic absenteeism has surged from 12% pre-pandemic to 25%, disproportionately impacting younger students and jeopardizing their long-term success.

School	Total Enrollment
Cobb Mountain Elementary School	137
Coyote Valley Elementary School	498
Loconoma Valley High School	21
Middletown High School	406
Middletown Middle School	214
Minnie Cannon Elementary School	198