Public school districts in the Border Belt saw a drop in student enrollment this year, as more families look to charter schools and other education options.
Bladen County Schools enrolls 4.4% fewer students this year compared to last, the biggest percentage drop in the region, according to the N.C. Department of Public Instruction. The district now serves 3,626 K-12 students.
Public Schools of Robeson County, by far the largest district in the region with nearly 20,000 students, experienced an enrollment decline of 2.2%.
The number of students at Whiteville City Schools is down 2.9%, while Columbus County Schools saw a drop of 2.3% At Scotland County Schools, enrollment fell by 2.5%.
Enrollment at traditional public schools has been declining for years in rural southeastern North Carolina and across the state. Charter schools, which are public but are not required to follow the rules placed on traditional public schools—have grown significantly, with more than 200 statewide. The number of home schools has more than doubled in the past decade. And private school enrollment is expected to rise since the General Assembly lifted income restrictions for the Opportunity Scholarship program.
The state funds public schools based on enrollment, so a drop in the number of students means districts have less money to spend.
In the Border Belt, Scotland County Schools get $15,902 per student from the state, according to the N.C. Department of Public Instruction. Bladen gets $15,127 per student, Robeson gets $14,139, Whiteville gets $13,431 and Columbus gets $13,293.
“Losses in enrollment are especially challenging because, while funding decreases, many of the district’s fixed costs remain the same,” Columbus County Schools Superintendent Eddie Beck told the Border Belt Independent. “We still operate the same schools, run the same buses, and provide the same essential services—just with fewer dollars to support them.”
Schools also receive federal and local money.
Districts received millions of federal dollars during the COVID-19 pandemic, when schools closed for months. But that money has run dry.
Many people have left the Border Belt over the past several years due to the loss of manufacturing jobs and changes in farming practices. But the drop in public school enrollment outpaces the population loss.
Robeson County traditional public schools now enroll 15% fewer students than in 2016. Meanwhile, the county’s population declined by about 9.4% during that time. Scotland County’s population has held steady over the past decade, while public school enrollment has dropped nearly 14%.
Meanwhile, charter school enrollment continues to climb. Emereau: Bladen now has 670 students, more than double the number in 2018, according to the N.C. Department of Public Instruction. The Paul R. Brown Leadership Academy in Bladen County also doubled its enrollment since 2016.
In Robeson County, enrollment at Old Main Stream Academy went from 204 students in 2022 to 534 this year.
Home schools have also become more popular. The number of registered home schools in Robeson County went from 911 in 2022 to 1,059 in 2025, according to the N.C. Department of Administration. In Scotland County, the number climbed from 160 to 231 during that time.
Beck, the superintendent of Columbus County Schools, said continued losses in funding are becoming “increasingly critical.”
“While the district plans long range—because our students deserve stable, forward-looking programs—funding changes that occur annually can disrupt that planning,” he said. “When reductions or shifts in funding happen from one year to the next, it requires constant adjustment and makes sustaining long-term initiatives more difficult, even with careful and responsible budgeting.”