Enrollment at most Franklin County schools has remained fairly stable this fall.

However, one school, Kingfield Elementary, realized an addition of 25 new students this year.

“Rural Maine bleeds kids,” said SAD 58 Superintendent Quenten Clark, “so we’re pleased we won’t be going down this year.”

Part of the Kingfield increase resulted when students from Highland and Lexington townships changed to Kingfield. The students previously attended New Portland’s elementary school, Clark explained. He speculated the change was part of the consolidation proposal that’s got everybody thinking.

The new students bring the school’s population to 160. Enrollment was expected to be about 145, he said, down from the 200-plus of just a few years ago.

The shift from New Portland Elementary School to Kingfield made no impact nor caused any reductions in services or staff, said Regina Campbell, SAD 74’s superintendent. The school’s enrollment remains in the low 30s, she said, but declined to comment on the reason parents had chosen to make the change.

Enrollment in other SAD 58 schools remained stable, with 156 students at Phillips Elementary and 106 students at Stratton. Strong Elementary has been growing for several years, Clark said, and has 180 students. Mount Abram High School has 324 students.

The district, at this point, has a total of 925 students compared with 899 in June, he said. When Clark began as superintendent, the total was closer to 1,050 but rural school districts have been losing kids for years, he said.

SAD 9 reports that enrollment is up slightly with 2,430 students. The system is up a few students, which wasn’t predicted, said assistant Superintendent Sue Pratt. A slight decline was expected.

“If that’s a reflection on the state of the communities then that’s a positive thing,” she said.

Numbers for schools in the system are Academy Hill 203, Cape Cod 204, Cascade Brook 287, Cushing 164, Mallett 347, Mt. Blue High School 858, Mt. Blue Middle School 457 and Weld 17.

Jay schools have 20 fewer students this fall – 809 students compared to 829 in June.

One difference is that Jay has 11 less students enrolled in pre-kindergarten, Superintendent Robert Wall said.

“We don’t know why. We hope we’re serving all of the students that need to be served,” Wall said.

School officials believe pre-kindergarten benefits students academically and socially, he said.

SAD 36 also has a smaller pre-kindergarten class this year with 30 students enrolled compared to 40 students in June.

Total enrollment in the system is at a slight increase of four students for a total of 1,011 enrolled compared to 1,007 in June.

Student population can change as students come and go, said Phillip Richardson, superintendent of Rangeley School District. For the past 10 years, the system tended to stay in the 220-230 range. This week, enrollment is at 225 but he’s been told that there may be other students coming in, he said.

Last year, the school picked up 20 new students but an equal number moved, he said, speculating that lake and coastal areas have out-priced themselves for most Maine workers.

“People love it here but with the cost of housing and no large business,” he said, “young people need to be either a professional or an entrepreneur to stay.”

The junior class at Rangeley has 30 students this year, the second grade has 23, but some grades have as few as 10, he said.