New state data from the N.C. Division of Non-Public Education reveal ongoing shifts in the K-12 landscape during the 2024-25 school year. Both home school and private school enrollment grew, increasing by around 5% and 3%, respectively. However, the charter sector experienced the greatest percentage growth increase of any K-12 sector in North Carolina during 2024-25, with a 6% uptick in enrollment.
Enrollment in district public schools continues to decline, although the decrease is slight. The majority of students in North Carolina, around 76%, still attend district schools. (Read this recent K-12 market share analysis from EdNC.)
Figures from the N.C. Division of Non-Public Education come on the heels of the state’s new annual charter schools report, presented to the Charter Schools Review Board last month. State Board of Education (SBE) members are expected to discuss the charter report at their July meeting later this week.
Public school enrollment: Charter and district
The number of students served by charter schools increased from 144,635 students in 2023-24 to 153,480 students in 2024-25. In addition, more than 74,000 students were on charter school waitlists at 161 charter schools at the beginning of this school year. As noted above, the increase in charter student enrollment represents a 6% uptick. (Read more about charter enrollment in this Coalition blog post.)
Charter schools often serve students from multiple counties/districts. See this 2024-25 breakdown in charter membership by students’ home district.
Attendance at North Carolina’s district public schools has decreased slightly, by around 1%, from 1,393,679 students in 2023-24 to 1,379,826 students in 2024-25. This figure is based on Average Daily Membership as outlined in the state’s public school budget. (See the historical breakdown in the March 2025 report, “Highlights of the North Carolina Public School Budget.”)
Home school enrollment
Estimated home school enrollment in North Carolina grew to include 165,243 students during the 2024-25 school year, a 4.8% increase over the year before. During the 2023-24 school year, 157,642 students learned at home. (View the state’s home school statistical history.)
In each of these five counties, more than 5,000 students were homeschooled in 2024-25:
- Forsyth (5,765)
- Johnston (5,427)
- Mecklenburg (11,626)
- Union (6,471)
- Wake (15,454)
Private school enrollment
Private school enrollment increased to include 135,738 students during the 2024-25 school year, a 3.4% uptick over the year before. During the 2023-24 school year, 131,230 students attended private schools. (See the state’s private school statistical history.)
In each of these six counties, more than 5,000 students attended private schools in 2024-25:
- Cumberland (6,274)
- Durham (5,828)
- Forsyth (6,082)
- Guilford (7,367)
- Mecklenburg (21,882)
- Wake (21,621)
Students in these six counties comprised more than half of the state’s total private school population.
Above photo: Shutterstock.
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