Enrollment trends

Question:
What are the enrollment trends in public and private elementary and secondary schools?

Response:

• Total enrollment in elementary and secondary schools was 53.4 million in fall 2000, then 54.9 million in fall 2010, and 55.4 million in fall 2020.
• Total enrollment for public elementary and secondary schools was 47.2 million students in fall 2000, then 49.5 million students in fall 2010, and 49.4 million students in fall 2020.
• Total enrollment for private elementary and secondary schools was 6.2 million students in fall 2000, then 5.4 million students in fall 2010, and 6.0 million students in fall 2020.

Enrollment in elementary and secondary institutions by level of institution: Selected years, fall 1985 through fall 2020
Year	Elementary and secondary, total	Public elementary and secondary schools			Private elementary and secondary schools
		Total	Prekindergarten through grade 8	Grades 9 through 12	Total	Prekindergarten through grade 8	Grades 9 through 12
Fall 1985	44,979	39,422	27,034	12,388	5,557	4,195	1,362
Fall 1990	46,864	41,217	29,876	11,341	5,6481	4,5121	1,1361
Fall 1995	50,759	44,840	32,338	12,502	5,918	4,756	1,163
Fall 2000	53,373	47,204	33,686	13,517	6,1691	4,9061	1,2641
Fall 2005	55,187	49,113	34,204	14,909	6,073	4,724	1,349
Fall 2010	54,867	49,484	34,625	14,860	5,3821	4,0841	1,2991
Fall 2011	54,790	49,522	34,773	14,749	5,268	3,977	1,291
Fall 2012	55,104	49,771	35,018	14,753	5,3331	4,0311	1,3021
Fall 2013	55,440	50,045	35,251	14,794	5,396	4,084	1,312
Fall 2014	55,888	50,313	35,370	14,943	5,5751	4,2021	1,3731
Fall 2015	56,189	50,438	35,388	15,050	5,751	4,304	1,446
Fall 2016	56,369	50,615	35,477	15,138	5,7541	4,2721	1,4821
Fall 2017	56,406	50,686	35,496	15,190	5,720	4,252	1,468
Fall 2018	56,304	50,694	35,498	15,196	5,6101	4,1671	1,4431
Fall 2019	56,282	50,796	35,551	15,246	5,486	4,066	1,420
Fall 2020	55,369	49,375	34,059	15,316	5,9942	4,4922	1,5022

¹Estimated based on data appearing in Projections of Education Statistics.

²Projected data.

NOTE: Data in this table represent the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Elementary and secondary enrollment includes students in local public school systems and in most private schools (religiously affiliated and nonsectarian), but generally excludes homeschooled children and students in subcollegiate departments of colleges and in federal schools. Excludes preprimary students in private schools that do not offer kindergarten or higher grades. Projections in this table were calculated after the onset of the coronavirus pandemic and take into account the expected impacts of the pandemic. Some data have been revised from previously published figures. Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding.

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics. (2022). Table 105.30. Enrollment in elementary, secondary, and degree-granting postsecondary institutions, by level and control of institution: Selected years, 1869-70 through fall 2030 [Data table]. In Digest of education statistics. U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences. Retrieved August 23, 2022, from https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d21/tables/dt21_105.30.asp.

Related Tables and Figures:  (Listed by Release Date)

• 2022, Common Core of Data, Data Tables
  
• 2022, Digest of Education Statistics 2021, Table 101.10. Estimates of resident population, by age group: 1970 through 2021
  
• 2022, The Condition of Education 2022: Private School Enrollment
  
• 2022, The Condition of Education 2022: Public Charter School Enrollment
  
• 2022, The Condition of Education 2022: Public School Enrollment
  
• 2022, The Condition of Education 2022: Racial/Ethnic Enrollment in Public Schools
  
• 2021, Digest of Education Statistics 2020, Table 103.10. Percentage of the population 3 to 34 years old enrolled in school, by sex, race/ethnicity, and age group: Selected years, 1980 through 2019
  
• 2021, Digest of Education Statistics 2020, Table 103.20. Percentage of the population 3 to 34 years old enrolled in school, by age group: Selected years, 1940 through 2019
  
• 2021, Digest of Education Statistics 2020, Table 105.30. Enrollment in elementary, secondary, and degree-granting postsecondary institutions, by level and control of institution: Selected years, 1869–70 through fall 2029
  
• 2019, Private School Universe Survey Data Tables
  
• 2019, Status and Trends in the Education of Racial and Ethnic Groups 2018: Elementary and Secondary Enrollment
  

Other Resources:  (Listed by Release Date)

• 2022, Common Core of Data (CCD) School and Agency Reports: These reports include totals for schools and their characteristics, students, federal program participation, and district size.
  
• 2022, Private School Universe Survey (PSS): This site provides access to information on the PSS as well as links to reports and data tables using PSS data.
  
• 2021, Characteristics of Private Schools in the United States: Results From the 2019-20 Private School Universe Survey
  
• 2020, NCES Blog: Bar Chart Races: Changing Demographics in K–12 Public School Enrollment
  
• 2020, Projections of Education Statistics to 2028
  
• 2017, Selected Statistics From the Public Elementary and Secondary Education Universe: School Year 2015–16