Amid population growth, percentage of school-aged children in Montana declines

The chart below shows how many K-12 school-aged children there are in Montana as compared to the total population. Despite meaningful population growth in the last 20+ years, the number of kids is not growing commensurately. Rather, kids who could enroll in K-12 schools represent a shrinking portion of the population. School administrators say this trend reflects Montana’s increasing unaffordability for families.