Seventeen of Wyoming's 51 school districts are at their lowest enrollment in the entire 26-year data record. That is one-third of the state's districts, up from five just a decade ago.

The all-time-low list spans every tier of Wyoming's system. Uinta #1ET (2,539 students) and Fremont #25ET (2,250) are mid-size regional hubs. Energy-dependent districts like Sweetwater #2ET (Green River, 2,201) and Sublette #9 (404) are on it. So are rural districts like Platte #1ET (Wheatland, 811), Weston #1 (708), and Sheridan #3ET (77).

Wyoming's two largest districts are not yet at their all-time lows, but they are closing in. Laramie #1ET (Cheyenne, 12,859) is just 83 students above its 2006 floor. Natrona #1ET (Casper, 11,594) is 186 away. At their current pace of decline, both could reach new lows within a year.

At the other end, only four districts are at all-time highs: Sheridan #1ET (1,255) and the three new charter academies that opened in 2024-2025.

A rapidly worsening pattern

The share of districts at all-time lows has tripled in a decade. In 2016, at the peak of the energy boom, just 5 of 48 districts (10 percent) were at their historic floor. By 2021, after the COVID shock, 12 districts had reached new lows. A brief recovery brought the number down to 5 in 2022.

Then the acceleration began. Twelve districts hit new lows in 2024. Ten more followed in 2025. And in 2026, the count jumped to 17 — the highest proportion in the data record.

The trend line points in one direction. Each year, more districts set new floor levels that the data has never seen before. For a state with 26 years of enrollment records, reaching uncharted territory in a third of districts in a single year is a signal that the decline is not stabilizing.

Who is at the bottom

The range of districts at all-time lows reveals how broadly the decline has spread.

Uinta #1ET (2,539 students) and Fremont #25ET (2,250) are mid-size districts that serve as regional hubs. Their presence on the list means the decline is not confined to tiny rural schools or energy-dependent communities — it has reached the districts that anchor multiple counties.

Carbon #1ET (Rawlins, 1,592) and Carbon #2 (568) are both at all-time lows, reflecting the combined impact of energy contraction and rural depopulation. Johnson #1ET (Buffalo, 1,097) and Washakie #1 (Worland, 1,050) are approaching the threshold below which maintaining a full-service district becomes increasingly difficult.

At the extreme end, Sheridan #3ET enrolls 77 students, Platte #2ET enrolls 185, and Big Horn #4 enrolls 225 — all at historic lows.

The four at all-time highs

Sheridan #1 is the only established district at an all-time high. Its economy is more diversified than the energy counties — healthcare, tourism, and ranching provide a broader employment base. The other three all-time highs are the new charter academies: Wyoming Classical Academy (367), Cheyenne Classical Academy (186), and Prairie View Community School (126).

The presence of charter schools at all-time highs in a state where one-third of traditional districts are at all-time lows captures Wyoming's enrollment challenge in miniature. The total student pool is shrinking. New schools are dividing it further. And the districts that built their infrastructure for a larger population are left with buildings, staff, and budgets designed for students who are no longer there.

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