trickle to flood: growth expected in South Sound districts

South Sound schools are growing as the wider population booms.

[I]n Pierce County, the Steilacoom Historical School District is expecting about 350 more students this fall than there were last fall, bringing total enrollment to about 2,500 students. That's a roughly 16 percent increase....

Meanwhile, North Thurston Public Schools and the Olympia and Tumwater school districts all are projected to enroll more students this fall. But the growth isn't expected to go far beyond a 1 percent increase, district officials said.

"We're having a small increase," said Courtney Schrieve, a spokeswoman for North Thurston, which is expected to double its 12,800 enrollment by 2025. "Over the next 10 years, we'll see significant growth, but right now, we're not seeing a huge jump."

Transfers to Fort Lewis accounts for part of the projected gains, as do a boom in housing with a concomitant increase in service sector employment. (Have you been out by Hawks Prairie lately, and traveled down Yelm Highway? Crazy growth.)

If you have friends finishing ed school in the next couple years, tell them to keep their job-seeking hopes up.