With less than a month to go before the first bell of the school year, Kamloops-Thompson School District is turning its attention to student enrolment.

And the big question for Supt. Terry Sullivan is what role the economy will play in the number of students who pass through school doors come September.

“We don’t know what impact the economy will have on us yet,” Sullivan said Sunday.

An early estimate has enrolment declining by about 450 pupils this year once final numbers are tallied at the end of the September.

The district’s population sat at about 14,000 during the 2008-2009 school year.

Sullivan anticipates the economic downturn could bring more students to Kamloops or take some away as parents relocate for jobs.

On the one hand: tough times in the Alberta oil patch could see families return to the Interior and these families could have school-age children.

And students who would have dropped out of high school to pursue work on construction sites might continue with their studies now that jobs are scarcer, said Sullivan.

“We’re really anxious to see what August brings,” he said. “At this point, we can just give our best estimate.”

The first day of school is Sept. 8. Principals will be back in schools by the third week of August for registration.

Sullivan said elementary enrolment is pretty much locked by the first week of September, but secondary registration is traditionally more fluid.

Trustees are also anxious to see what enrolment numbers are like this fall. A big task facing the school board in the coming months is a series of 27 meetings that will determine the future of the school district.

A facilities report recommends closing 11 elementary schools and turning all high schools, except South Kamloops and NorKam, into junior secondary schools. South Kamloops and NorKam will revert to senior secondary schools.

Declining enrolment has played a big part in the makeup of the report. Trustee Kathleen Karpuk said the economy may make people think twice about moving, keeping more children in Kamloops schools.

Trustee Annette Glover agrees. She said enrolment is always a question at this time of year and believes this fall is no different.

As for the facilities report: Karpuk and Glover have already shifted schedules to accommodate the meetings. Karpuk has talked with parents during the summer and many are anxious about the outcome.

“People have really mixed feelings about this,” she said. Most understand the district is in a tough spot and changes need to be made. But no one likes to see schools closed.

School board vice-chairwoman Diane Dosch said parents are also concerned in her community of Logan Lake.

She said parents don’t want to see young children in the same school with high school students nor are they OK with the idea of students in Grade 11 and 12 being bussed to Kamloops.

“I think parents may have to give a little and take a little,” she said.