Overcrowded yet shrinking: ISD and LWSD face cuts
Since 2018, enrollment in both Issaquah (ISD) and Lake Washington (LWSD) School Districts has declined, and it is projected to fall even further in the next six years. Despite the decline, high schools in both districts are overcrowded and are projected to remain that way. Both districts are working to manage the enrollment imbalance with new construction or expansions. At the same time, they are combining or eliminating elementary classes in response to declining enrollment-based budgets.
According to Lisa Guthrie, President of the LWSD Board of Directors, the changes in enrollment come from a decline in birth rate in the late 2010s and the lasting effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
ISD is projected to lose 351 students in the 2025-2026 school year, primarily at the elementary level. At the same time, the district’s high school enrollment is expected to exceed capacity by about 12.66% by 2028.
LWSD is experiencing similar enrollment imbalances. Since 2019, LWSD elementary enrollment has decreased 14.3%, while high school enrollment has increased by 16.9%.
LWSD’s Christa McAuliffe Elementary School is reducing its kindergarten classes from three in the 2024-2025 school year to two for 2025-2026, according to LWSD Superintendent Jon Holmen.
To ease overcrowding in ISD high schools, the district plans to add permanent capacity for 656 students in 2027 through new construction, along with temporary portable classrooms.
After a proposed bond to fund a new ISD high school failed at the ballot earlier this year, the district pivoted to a smaller project.
“We are moving ahead with a plan to build a smaller portion of the original high school design, which will alleviate overcrowding at both Skyline High School and Issaquah High School. This scaled-down project still meets previously issued land-use and permit requirements approved by the City of Issaquah,” said Wendy Castleman, ISD’s Director of Communications.
The new facility will be funded with $146 million from previous voter-approved measures in addition to other state funds and interest. Approved by the ISD School Board in April 2025, construction is scheduled to begin in March 2026. The school will be located at the original site plan at the south end of 228th Street.
Similarly, LWSD is in the process of implementing projects funded by a 2022 voter-approved construction levy, including additions at Eastlake High School to accommodate an additional 300 students.
LWSD expects that the expansion will be the most effective use of taxpayer money once completed. The original plan was to build a new high school close to Eastlake. However, due to enrollment changes, the school board voted to redirect levy funds to additions for Eastlake and Redmond high schools instead.
With public school funding closely tied to enrollment, declining numbers will lead to reductions in both districts’ budgets.
ISD anticipates a loss of four million dollars in revenue. Additionally, as of March 2025, the fund balance is projected to decline by $9 million. New revenues of $900,000 in one-time legislative funding and $2.3 million in transportation funding updated the projection to be a decline of $5.8 million instead of $9 million.
ISD is adjusting staff numbers to align with enrollment trends. In addition, ISD plans to address enrollment decline and rising costs with its latest budget plan that prioritizes reallocation over expansion.
LWSD projects that declining enrollment will substantially impact their budget as well.
“We’re budgeting for an enrollment decline of 298 students in 2025-26, which represents a loss of $2.5 million in revenue, as well as a reduction of $1.1 million in expenditures,” said Lisa Guthrie, President of LWSD’s Board of Directors.
To address these losses, the LWSD school board approved a resolution to reduce staffing, including a reduction at elementary schools.
Looking into the future, LWSD will consider combining fourth and fifth grade classes in elementary schools, as well as adding a fifth comprehensive high school.
“This possibility is still in the very early discussion stages — one of the big questions being whether overcrowding will continue to be a concern in coming years, versus whether it will let up naturally, as the smaller cohorts currently in elementary school move through the system,” said Guthrie.
ISD and LWSD will continue to monitor and respond to new enrollment data for the 2025-2026 school year.
“Even with projections, enrollment can shift due to many factors such as local development growth projections, housing inventory, mortgage/rental rates, birth rates, etc.,” said Mark Sherwood, ISD’s Executive Director of Communications.
