West Fargo 6
Six Districts, Half the State
North Dakota has 165 school districts. Six of them, Bismarck, West Fargo, Fargo, Grand Forks, Minot, and Mandan, now enroll 57,254 students, or 49.2% of the state's 116,365 total. The remaining 159 di...
Minot's Graduation Rate Crossed Below 70% in 2024, Down 19 Points Since 2013
In 2013, nearly nine out of ten Minot seniors graduated on time. In 2024, fewer than seven out of ten did.
Grand Forks Cut Total Absences by 34-43%. Can the Model Scale?
For five years, Grand Forks went without a single year of improvement in chronic absenteeism. From 14% in 2017-18 to 27% in 2022-23, the rate moved sideways or up every year, with a 7-point jump in th...
Bismarck-Mandan's 18-Year Growth Engine Stalls
For 18 years, the Bismarck-Mandan corridor grew. The two districts on opposite banks of the Missouri added students nearly every year, first on the strength of the Bakken oil boom, then as state gover...
Three in Four North Dakota Ninth Graders Now Earn a Diploma on Time, Down from Nearly Nine in Ten
In 2012, nearly every ninth grader in North Dakota made it to senior year. Of the 7,462 students who started high school that fall, 7,427 were still enrolled as twelfth graders four years later -- a 9...
Fargo and West Fargo Both Hit All-Time Low Graduation Rates as the Metro Booms
Drive 10 minutes in any direction around Fargo and you will pass new subdivisions, school construction sites, and help-wanted signs. The metro area has been one of North Dakota's economic success stor...
West Fargo Has Grown Every Year for 18 Years
In 2008, West Fargo enrolled 6,179 students, fewer than half the size of its neighbor across the Sheyenne Diversion. Fargo had 10,493. The gap was 4,314 students, wide enough that nobody confused the ...
6,336 Students Below the Trend Line
Between 2008 and 2019, North Dakota added an average of 1,526 students a year. The Bakken oil boom filled western classrooms. Fargo's suburbs pushed east. Enrollment climbed from 94,052 to 110,842, a ...
89% to 82%: North Dakota's Graduation Rate Collapse
North Dakota graduated 89.0% of its high school seniors in 2020. Four years later, that number is 82.4%. The state has not posted a single year of improvement since.
West Fargo Has Grown for 18 Straight Years
In 2008, West Fargo Schools enrolled 6,179 students, fewer than two-thirds the size of either Bismarck or Fargo. Eighteen years later, it has 13,211 students, a 113.8% increase, and sits 466 students ...
North Dakota's 16-Year Growth Era Ends
For 16 of the past 17 years, North Dakota added students. The Bakken oil boom pulled families into the western prairie. Fargo's suburbs sprawled east. The state's enrollment climbed from 93,406 in 200...