district-spotlight
North Platte Has Lost 636 Students in a Decade
North Platte Public Schools has the longest decline streak among Nebraska's mid-size districts, losing 14.8% of enrollment since 2016 even as the state grew.
Nebraska Education News & Data
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chronic_absenteeism
Nebraska Has Recovered Only 26% of Its COVID Absence Spike -- at This Pace, Recovery Won't Come Until 2034
Nebraska's chronic absenteeism rate has fallen only 2.4 percentage points from its 2022 peak, with 21,515 more students chronically absent than before COVID.
geographic-concentration
Three Counties Now Enroll 55% of Nebraska's Students
Douglas, Sarpy, and Lancaster counties added 41,573 students since 2005 while the rest of Nebraska added just 1,976, a 6.2-point enrollment shift.
chronic_absenteeism
Alliance Public Schools Cut Chronic Absenteeism from 48% to 20% in Four Years
Alliance Public Schools achieved Nebraska's largest chronic absenteeism improvement: a 28.5 percentage-point drop over four consecutive years.
demographics
Fremont Schools Are Now Majority Hispanic
Fremont voted to ban undocumented renters in 2010. Its schools are now 50.5% Hispanic and 45.2% white. The crossover happened in 2025.
early-childhood
Nebraska's Pre-K Nearly Matches Kindergarten
Pre-K enrollment more than tripled since 2005, now reaching 92% of kindergarten. Nearly one in three new students Nebraska gained came from expanding pre-K.
district-spotlight
Lincoln Public Schools Loses Students for the First Time in a Generation
After 15 straight growth years adding 10,000 students, LPS lost 334 in 2026. Shrinking K classes and white enrollment decline drive the reversal.
demographics
Grand Island Is Now 62% Hispanic
Nebraska's meatpacking corridor has transformed: Grand Island crossed majority-Hispanic in 2013, Schuyler hit 88%, and second-wave towns are following.
enrollment
Nebraska Survived COVID. Then the Real Decline Started.
Nebraska grew enrollment during COVID and recovered fully by 2025. But 2026 brought the first post-recovery decline, and more than half of districts never came back.
demographics
Nearly One in Four Nebraska Students Is Now Hispanic
Hispanic enrollment in Nebraska more than doubled over 22 years, adding nearly 45,000 students. In 2026, the growth reversed.
district-spotlight
Bennington: From 598 Students to Nebraska's 12th-Largest District
Bennington Public Schools has grown every single year for 21 consecutive years, adding 3,942 students and climbing from 68th to 12th in statewide rankings.
grade-shift
Nebraska's Kindergarten Class Is Back to Its 2005 Trough
Nebraska kindergarten enrollment fell to 21,275 in 2025-26, essentially matching the 2005 trough after a four-year decline. Grade 12 hit a record 26,008.
demographics
Omaha Public Schools: From Half White to One in Five
OPS was 46% white in 2005. It is 20.3% today. Hispanic students now outnumber white students two to one in Nebraska's largest district.
enrollment
Nebraska's 20-Year Growth Era Ends
Nebraska hit an all-time enrollment high of 330,136 in 2025. Then 1,988 students disappeared, driven by losses in both white and Hispanic enrollment.
enrollment
Nebraska Publishes 2025-26 Enrollment Data
NDE releases 2025-26 enrollment data showing Nebraska's first non-pandemic enrollment decline in 20 years.