Mid Coast Today

There were 3,679 white students enrolled in Waldo County schools in the 2022-23 school year, 0.1% more than the previous year, according to the Maine Department of Education.

Data showed that white students made up 92.9% of the 3,962 students in Waldo County schools at the time. They were the most represented ethnicity.

Among the 25 schools in the county, Belfast Area High School recorded the highest enrollment of white students in the 2022-23 school year, with a total of 433 students.

Recent data from Maine's public schools for the 2023-2024 school year reveal a noticeable growth in Hispanic, Black and multiracial enrollment over the past decade. While over 85% of students still identify as white, this shows a slow but steady increase in diversity within the state schools.

Despite these shifts, Maine's public school enrollment remains about 4% below pre-pandemic levels, despite a slight rebound from the sharp drop during the 2020-21 school year. The decline is partly due to an increase in homeschooling and more students completing high school early through college courses and adult education.

A spokesperson for the Maine Department of Education also mentioned in an interview with Maine Public some other pandemic-related factors persist, with "some parents choosing not to enroll younger children in school and older students who took on jobs to support their families during the pandemic and who are still counted on to provide that support."

School Name	White Students Enrollment	Total Enrollment	% of Total Enrollment
Belfast Area High School	433	490	88.4%
Troy A. Howard Middle School	312	348	89.7%
Mt. View High School	277	295	93.9%
Leroy H. Smith School	249	264	94.3%
Captain Albert W. Stevens School	230	252	91.3%
Mt. View Middle School	206	222	92.8%
Mt. View Elementary School	201	217	92.6%
Searsport Elementary School	208	209	99.5%
Samuel L. Wagner Middle School	195	208	93.8%
Lincolnville Central School	198	203	97.5%
Searsport District High School	117	128	91.4%
Ames Elementary School	118	124	95.2%
Palermo Consolidated School	118	120	98.3%
Morse Memorial School	89	101	88.1%
East Belfast School	90	99	90.9%
Ecology Learning Center	93	99	93.9%
Searsport District Middle School	86	92	93.5%
Edna Drinkwater School	76	82	92.7%
Islesboro Central School	74	78	94.9%
Gladys Weymouth Elementary School	74	77	96.1%
Monroe Elementary School	60	66	90.9%
Walker Memorial School	57	62	91.9%
Kermit S. Nickerson School	51	54	94.4%
Troy Central School	49	52	94.2%
Unity Elementary School	18	20	90%