Mathews schools superintendent Dr. David S. Daniel shared a bit of troubling news with school board members Tuesday night concerning school enrollment.

Enrollment at the end of the 10-day count, he said, currently stands at 824 students, down about 50 from earlier projections. This 50-student drop “has put a shock into the system” that carries budget implications, he said during the meeting, which was held in the J. Murray Brooks Auditorium at Thomas Hunter Middle School.

Gov. Glenn Youngkin signed Virginia’s recently adopted budget last week, so the actual breakdown has yet to be calculated, but under the original state budget, this loss in Average Daily Membership would have cost the division as much as $250,000, he said. Figures from the revised, adopted budget will be compiled in the next couple of weeks.

Daniel reported a significant rise in the number of parents opting to home school their children. Last year, that number was about 120, with 138 expected in 2023-2024.

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