Snowberger
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Durango School District 9-R’s schools are bustling with a high enrollment for the 2016-17 school year, and that’s good news for a district that’s also got a growing special-needs population.

The district topped the 5,000 student mark for the first time at the Oct. 5 count, which still needs to be verified.

“We already had to allocate additional money for special-education resources,” said Superintendent Dan Snowberger, “so it’s good to know we have some additional per pupil revenues coming.”

The 5,136 students counted include 310 attending Colorado Connections@Durango, the district’s new online offering. District 9-R receives 5 percent of the per-pupil revenue for those students. It had budgeted for 250, so there will be a small increase in revenue for those students.

The district also has 58 new students, with Durango High School and Escalante Middle School seeing the largest increases.

A revised budget reflecting the higher enrollment is expected to be presented at either the December or January board meeting.

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IF YOU GO

Durango School District 9-R will hold a meeting to discuss revised graduation guidelines for the Class of 2021, for current eighth-grade parents and teachers at 6 p.m. Oct. 18 at Durango High School, 2390 Main Ave. After a joint session, eighth-graders will break away to meet with academic advisers.