Department announces 2023-24 enrollment figures for public and charter schools

Enrollment at Hawaiʻi's public schools (including charters--editor) is 167,649 at the beginning of the school year, remaining relatively steady with a 0.6% decrease.

EDITOR'S NOTE -- HERE ARE THE REAL NUMBERS EXTRAPOLATED FROM LAST YEAR'S NEWS RELEASE:

News Release from DoE, 21-Sep-2023

HONOLULU — Enrollment at Hawaii's public schools is 167,649 at the beginning of the school year. Enrollment is relatively steady compared with an enrollment of 168,634 students at the start of last school year — a difference of 0.6%. 

The figures represent students enrolled in Department of Education schools, including students enrolled in the Department’s distance learning program, and public charter schools. The state's 37 charter schools enrolled 7.4% of public school students this year:  a total of 12,427 students.

The declining trend in enrollment counts over the past five school years reflects Hawaiʻi’s overall declining birth rate over the last decade. Department data also show that families’ leading reason for removing their students from public schools is to relocate to the continent.

Based on enrollment for the 2023-24 school year, the five largest HIDOE public schools by grade level are:

High schools (grades 9-12): Campbell (2,875), Waipahu (2,516), Mililani (2,432), Farrington (2,072), Moanalua (1,933)

Middle (grades 6-8) and intermediate schools (grades 7-8): Mililani Middle (1,672), ‘Ewa Makai Middle (1,253), Waipahu Intermediate (1,147), Maui Waena Intermediate (1,126), Kaimukī Middle (1,006)

Elementary schools: August Ahrens (1,153), ‘Ewa (1,115), Holomua (1,070), Kealakehe (889), Keone‘ula (862) 

The five smallest HIDOE schools in the state include: Ni‘ihau High and Elementary (20), Maunaloa Elementary (43), the Hawaii School for the Deaf and the Blind (52), Kilohana Elementary (79), and Keolu Elementary (91).

The five largest charter schools are: Hawaiʻi Technology Academy (1,605), Kamaile Academy (893), the Hawaiʻi Academy of Arts and Sciences (708), Kīhei Charter School (676), and Ka Waihona o ka Naʻauao (626).

As of the “Official Enrollment Count” date of August 21, 2023, four Lāhaināluna Complex schools on Maui--Lāhaināluna High, Lāhainā Intermediate, Princess Nāhiʻenaʻena Elementary and King Kamehameha III Elementary--had not yet opened due to the Maui wildfire emergency. The enrollment for Lāhaināluna Complex schools is based on the students who were pre-registered at the school before the start of the school year and did not transfer to another school or withdraw by the OEC date. The four Lāhaināluna Complex schools on Maui impacted by the Aug. 8 wildfires saw a combined enrollment decrease of 585 students compared to the previous school year while other Maui schools saw enrollment increases due to this fluctuation of displaced students. The Department is closely tracking students as they continue to re-enroll in other options, including at other HIDOE schools, distance learning programs, charter schools or private schools, or withdraw to homeschools or relocate out of state. This information is available online at bit.ly/LahainaSchoolsProgressReport and is updated periodically. 

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LINK >>> View Report <<< (​Download our spreadsheet of the official public and charter school enrollment counts for 2023-24.)

2020: DoE Enrollment Drops 3%--Charter School Enrollment Up 2%

2019: DoE Enrollment Drops Again--Charter School Enrollment Up

2016: DoE Enrollment Drops Again—Charters Growing

2013: Hawaii public school enrollment grows by 2,000 students

SA: Enrollment figures released for Hawaii’s public schools