District officials submitted the district’s preliminary count day numbers to the state last Wednesday, and are now in hopes of a larger check from the Michigan Department of Education (MDE).

Based on the unofficial numbers, the district is up 262.04 Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) students from last fall, bringing the total count up to 6,171.35.

The state-mandated count day helps to determine how much funding each public school district receives. The formula is simple – more students equals more state aid.

The fall count day represents 90 percent of a district’s funding, while the previous year’s spring count is just 10 percent.

Oxford Virtual Academy saw the largest growth in numbers since fall 2016, showing an increase of approximately 73 FTE students.

Each of the district’s elementary schools saw an increase, with the exception of Oxford Elementary which showed a decrease by 45.51.

Clear Lake Elementary (up by 30.74), Daniel Axford Elementary (an increase of 5.39), Lakeville Elementary (up by 48.76), Leonard Elementary (up by 27.42) were all among those which had an increase in FTE numbers.

Growth in the district was also shown in the Oxford Schools Early College program (up by 30.07), Oxford Crossroads Day School (up by 4.32), and Oxford Middle School (up by 29.26)

The district’s Early Childhood program showed a slight increase of less than one FTE student.

According to the preliminary count, Oxford High School showed the greatest decline of 55.09 FTE students from last year’s fall count.

Oxford Bridges High School also showed a slight decrease in its preliminary student numbers by 1.69 FTE students.

Superintendent Tim Throne said he feels the continued growth shown in the district’s FTE student numbers is a testament to the quality of Oxford’s schools, teachers and programming.

“I am extremely happy with our numbers across the board,” said Throne. “Only three schools saw a drop in enrollment: Oxford High School, Bridges, and Oxford Elementary School. Considering the competitive educational environment, we are very pleased.”

All of these count numbers are considered preliminary and won’t be finalized until November. Oxford Schools currently has several shared time agreements that are not reported as schools, but they do contribute towards the district’s total FTE preliminary count, according to Assistant Superintendent of Student Services Denise Sweat.

Students who had excused absences on Count Day have 30 calendar days to return to school, while students with unexcused absences have 10 school days to return in order to be considered enrolled in the district.

After that, the numbers will be submitted to Oakland Schools for auditing before being submitted to the MDE.

To determine the district’s final FTE, the state takes 90 percent of the current fall year count and 10 percent of the previous year’s audited February count. Those figures are then multiplied by the district’s current year state aid foundation allowance of $7,511 per FTE student. The state then subtracts from that amount assumed local revenue collected via non-homestead property taxes.

Oxford Schools will receive the final audited FTE count by the end of February, according to Sweat.