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Albert Lea Area Schools is seeing a slight uptick in enrollment compared to the previous year as it starts the school year next week.

As of Monday, there are 3,205 kindergarten through 12th graders slated to begin school in the district, compared to 3,122 at the start of the 2023-24 school year.

In the 2022-23 school year there were 3,263 students at the start of the year and in 2021-22 there were 3,303.

Ashley Mattson, executive director of Human Resources for the district, told the school board that the number of starting students this year is 183 more than in March of the 2023-24 school year, when there were 3,022 students, and 201 students more than the 3,004 students that there were enrolled at the end of the school year.

Numbers may still fluctuate a bit in the next two weeks, as there is a 15-day drop period for students.

The enrollment numbers do not include pre-K or adult learning students.

Superintendent Ron Wagner said while it is exciting to see families choosing Albert Lea, as well as staff and potential staff choosing Albert Lea, the district will need to build on that and monitor numbers moving forward.

Mattson said district leaders have also been busy hiring new staff for the upcoming year. She noted several administration have attended college and career fairs to network and attract contacts for future candidates. She said there was also an in-person job fair with special education vacancies that was successful, and the district is broadening its areas where it posts jobs.

She said there were 27 licensed K-12 hires, including nine in special education, six at the elementary level, five in secondary and seven in student support. Student support includes everyone from staff who support multi-language learners to school social workers.

Wagner thanked the administrative team for reaching out to potential employees and said the district should celebrate that it has a full site for staffing heading into the new year, especially in special services. He said he is also excited to have four licensed staff members who at some time left the district return this year to the district.

Tonya Franks, executive director of academic and accountability, talked about the mentor program in place with the district and the relationships built with new and existing teachers over time.