Which Ventura County district had largest enrollment in 2023-24 school year?

Oxnard Union High School District had the highest enrollment among Ventura County school districts, welcoming 17,316 students during the 2023-24 school year, according to the California Department of Education.

Of all the students welcomed in the 2023-24 school year, 51% of them were boys, 48.8% were girls, and 0.2% identified themselves as non-binary or did not specify their gender.

Data also showed that the majority of students were Hispanic or Latino, making up 80.7% of Oxnard Union High School District’s total enrollment.

Among the 20 districts in Ventura County, Conejo Valley Unified School District ranked second in enrollment numbers with 15,977 students, while Simi Valley Unified School District welcomed 15,658 students and ranked third in the 2023-24 school year.

Oxnard Union High School District roughly covers schools within Ventura County and has a main office in Oxnard.

In the previous school year, Oxnard Union High School District also had the highest number of students among Ventura County districts.

After peaking at 6.3 million in the early 2000s, public school enrollment in California has marked its seventh consecutive decline in the 2023-24 school year, with projections indicating it could fall to approximately 5.2 million by the 2033-34 school year. This trend is attributed to lower birth rates, slowed immigration, and families relocating out of state due to high housing costs. Rural and coastal districts have been particularly affected, facing tough decisions such as school closures and staffing reductions.

Although chronic absenteeism in California decreased in 2023, it remains double the pre-pandemic rate. According to the Public Policy Institute of California, chronic absenteeism in the state public schools reached 25% in 2023, up from 12% in 2019.