Birmingham City Schools Enrollment Shows Slight Increase For First Time In Decades
Something happened in Birmingham schools this year, that hasn’t happened in more than three decades – the system didn’t have a drop in enrollment.
Birmingham City Schools showed a slight increase in enrollment with a total of 24,290 students. That’s three more than the year before — a shift for a school system where steady enrollment declines in previous years had forced cuts in staff and services.
Newly elected Birmingham School Board President Wardine Alexander says this milestone can benefit the district.
“By increasing the number of students that increases the funding we get from the state. It also gives us an opportunity to provide more programs,” she says.
Kindergarten and primary grades account for the strongest enrollment in the system with more than 2,000 students in each grade from pre-K to Third, according to data from the State Department of Education.
Alexander says the school system has increased the number of pre-K programs and hopes strong enrollment there and in primary grades will fuel future growth.
With new cuts at CDC, some fear there’s ‘nobody to answer the phone’
More than 1,300 staffers at the health agency got notices they were fired — but more than half were reinstated. The cuts will hobble some divisions, employees say.
Trump awards the Medal of Freedom posthumously to Charlie Kirk
President Trump presented the award to Kirk's widow, Erika Kirk, in the White House Rose Garden on Tuesday.
Drew Struzan, artist of iconic movie posters, dies at 78
The artist and illustrator created iconic posters for movie franchises like Indiana Jones, Star Wars and Back to the Future.
In new memoir, John T. Edge explores Southern identity and a troubled family history
Writer John T. Edge has spent much of his career telling stories about a changing American South filtered through the lens of food and culture. Now he's talking about his troubled family's history.
Afghan earthquake triggers contradictory Taliban tactics on rescuing women
The Taliban responded with contradictory stances in the effort to rescue women and girls who were wounded and left homeless. That's a reflection of tensions between hardliners and pragmatists.
This week brings a bumper harvest of brand new books
This week's new titles include memoir, comics journalism and speculative fiction, horror and humor. Susan Orlean tells her own story in Joyride, and Pulitzer-winner Adam Johnson has a new novel.
