RE: census figures

["Melynda Huskey" <mghuskey@hotmail.com>]

Dear Dale,

But we have exactly no reason to believe that the trend will continue--we 
don't know enough.  For example, we don't know at what rate children entered 
private schools over the decade--was it a steady increase, a sudden bubble? 
Is that trend slowing or speeding up presently? How many private schools did 
we have in Moscow in 1990?  How many do we have now?  I know of at least one 
case where a MHS student transferred to a private boarding school in another 
state--is that student counted as a private school student here or in that 
state?  Has enrollment increased at the same rate for say, St. Mary's as it 
has for Montrose Academy?  Would secular private schools (are there any in 
Moscow?) see the same rate of increase as sectarian ones?  Are changes in 
enrollment associated with particular events in Moscow or MSD history--say 
the long-drawn-out fight over Advanced Placement courses?

And from my point of view, MSD ought to be looking for, and sharing with us, 
the answers to some of these questions.  There are parents in our community 
who want only a sectarian education for their children:  MSD will never meet 
their needs, and shouldn't try.  But there may also be parents who are 
settling for a sectarian education whose needs could be met more effectively 
in improved public schools.  We need data, and we can only get that through 
research.

Melynda Huskey


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