PORT ANGELES -- The Sequim School District is reshaping programs, broadening career training and investing in new facilities as it adapts to shifting demographics and works with local partners to support long-term economic vitality in the community, Superintendent Regan Nickels said.
Nickels, speaking on "Coffee with Colleen," hosted by Economic Development Council Executive Director Colleen McAleer on Wednesday, said the school district is focusing on early intervention and attendance to improve student outcomes, expanding pathways to graduation and aligning programs with workforce needs even as enrollment declines and rising costs pressure funding and long-term planning.
Lower birth rates -- a national trend -- are driving lower enrollment, not students leaving the district.
"The students are not being born out there to even come to your community," Nickels said.
This is reflected in smaller incoming classes, with kindergarten projected at about 137 students compared with as many as 170 in previous years.
The school district reported 2,531 students in April and expected a drop of about 58 next year.
Contributing to the decline has been a poor job market and lack of housing, with new construction skewed toward retirees rather than workers with children.
"Young families move to the places where they have employment," Nickels said.
To help students stay in school, engaged and on track to graduate, the school district has created different paths that meet students' interests, learning style and family preferences. It offers 67 career and technical education courses, with programs designed to give students hands-on experience and provide alternatives to traditional academic tracks.
The district also operates Olympic Peninsula Academy, a hybrid homeschool program with part-time in-person instruction, and Dungeness Virtual School, where students complete coursework online with teacher support.
Nickels said there has been an increased emphasis on the ninth grade as an indicator of student success because those who fall behind as freshmen often struggle to recover.
Staff identify students who are struggling -- before they fail -- and then step in to provide assistance.
Chronic absenteeism -- or missing two days or more of school in a month -- is a key driver of students falling behind and not finishing school.
It remains a significant challenge for the school district, with about 30 percent of elementary students and up to 40 percent of secondary students meeting that mark, she said.
The school district works with students and parents to address the reasons for the absences and helps to provide solutions. In the most serious truancy cases, the court becomes involved.
"Our graduation rate is improving, and the results for 2025 landed us at 90 percent," Nickels said.
"The goal would be that we get to 95 percent or higher. That is the pinnacle of a school system's mission."
In February 2025, voters approved a $145.95 million bond to fund capital improvements across the district.
Projects include replacing Helen Haller Elementary School and multiple buildings at Sequim High School, upgrading athletic facilities, improving traffic flow at Greywolf Elementary, constructing a new transportation center, and expanding safety and security systems.
The high school and a career and technical education center -- part of the bond project -- are expected to move forward first.
Another project, the Ramponi Center for Technical Excellence, is being funded through a grant and private donations, including support from local partners.
Even as the district advances new programs and facilities, it is facing a $1.8 million shortfall tied to fewer students -- and thus less state funding -- as well as higher expenses.
"We didn't see that diesel was going to cost what it currently does today," Nickels said.