Allen ISD’s enrollment is projected to continue declining over the next five years, according to a report from School District Strategies.
The big picture
Enrollment could decline between 1% and 2.3% in the next six years, according to School District Strategies’ projections. The projections come as a new snapshot confirmed enrollment fell again in 2025.
During a Feb. 23 board of trustees meeting, Demographic Research Director Brent Alexander said enrollment has declined by 1,440 students since 2020. That’s about a 6.7% net decline, according to Alexander’s presentation. Enrollment has fallen each year since 2022.
“The rate of decline over these last three years has accelerated, averaging about 2.6% over the last three years,” Alexander said.
The snapshot was taken at the end of October 2025 that showed a total of 20,140 students enrolled at Allen ISD for the current school year, according to the presentation.
The cause
Falling enrollment is influenced by multiple factors, including:
Population aging in placeFlat or declining local birth rateKindergarten enrollment decliningHigh costs for housing in AllenLimited supply of traditional single-family homesThese factors are resulting in the district’s enrollment moving in a downward pattern, Alexander said.
“Many things are continuing to influence the district’s enrollment,” Alexander said. “The acceleration in the declining enrollment really continues to be major. The major items that keep impacting that are the aging in place, and the fact that fewer families with younger children can afford to move into the district.”
Looking ahead
Alexander said the district is projected to drop below the 20,000 mark in fall 2026 when another enrollment snapshot is conducted. Other school districts in Collin and Tarrant counties are also experiencing enrollment declines, he said.
“If we don’t see any changes to these things that are influencing enrollment, we’re going to see the district continue to move towards 18,000, 19,000 total enrollment over the next four to five years,” Alexander said.
Quote of note
Board member John Holley said the declining enrollment is out of the district’s control but officials will continue examining it.
“I just want to remind our—especially our citizens out there that we’re definitely looking at these numbers but we wish we could do something” he said.
In case you missed it
The enrollment report comes as district officials begin preparing for the 2026-27 school year budget. Funding received from the state is partly tied to student enrollment, according to district officials. When it declines, school districts receive less funding for daily maintenance and operations.
Officials are hoping to generate additional revenue for the district through a new open enrollment program called the Allen Advantage. The program soft-launched last fall and brought 20 additional students to the district for the spring semester.