Students were back in class on September 2, 2025, marking the start of another academic year for Rocky View Schools (RVS). Two days later, on September 4, the RVS board held its first meeting of the year during which Superintendent Ryan Reed delivered an updated enrollment report. The numbers tell a story of growth, surprises, and some unanticipated variances across grades and regions.
Enrollment numbers vs projections
As of September 3, 2025, the total number of students registered in RVS stood at 29,617, falling short of the projection of 29,730 — a shortfall of 113 students.
While the projection had already anticipated an increase of about 487 students over the previous school year, the actual growth has been slightly lower than expected.
Reed noted that projections are always somewhat tentative — many factors such as last-minute registrations, transfers, and demographic shifts can affect the final count.
Grade-by-grade and regional trends
While the aggregate numbers are close to expectations, some grades are showing different trajectories:
Grade 1 enrolment is exceeding projections, possibly linked to changes in kindergarten numbers, which tend to precede first-grade enrollment.
Grades 9 and 12 are seeing a small dip compared to what was forecasted. Reed expressed some surprise at this, pointing out that in other years these senior grades tend to be more stable since movement out of the system is often less in those grades. He suggested these numbers might “normalize” over the next few weeks.
Geographically, there are also interesting patterns:
Airdrie and Chestermere have higher enrolment than projected.
Cochrane and Beiseker are slightly under projections.
Kathryn, Crossfield, Langdon show stable numbers, while Springbank has seen enrolment increases.
Planning implications and ongoing registration
Reed emphasized how important accurate enrolment forecasts are for planning: staffing, space allocation, classroom organization, and budgeting all hinge on knowing how many students will be in each school. The earlier these projections are finalized, the smoother the start-up phase tends to be for schools.
There are still “a few hundred” registrations being finalized, meaning updated numbers will emerge in the coming days and weeks.
Related facility & boundary changes
In parallel, RVS is making adjustments in some communities to balance capacity and accommodate growth. In Chestermere, for example, attendance boundary changes and grade-configuration shifts for certain schools (such as East Lake School expanding to include Grades 7-9) have been implemented for the 2025-26 year. These changes aim to ensure students attend schools closer to home and address space pressures.
Additionally, RVS continues to plan for new schools, expansions, and modernizations across its jurisdiction, to keep pace with anticipated growth.
What to watch in the coming weeks
With the school year underway, key indicators over the next few weeks will include whether enrolment in Grades 9 and 12 stabilize, how the outstanding registrations affect totals, and whether regional trends persist. As some schools and areas exceed projections and others lag, planning and resource allocation will be crucial to ensure all students are accommodated — both academically and logistically.
As Reed observed: predicting where students will go is challenging, but getting those numbers right matters — for students, staff, and communities alike.
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