4,000 and counting: Students are coming back to Melrose after the pandemic year.

MELROSE, MA — Student enrollment has bounced back after the district lost hundreds of students during the pandemic, with preliminary numbers increasing to an even 4,000.

That number, which was as of Sept. 10, will change between now and when the district submits the official count to the state Oct. 1, a count that directly impacts state funding Melrose Public Schools will receive.

Last year's Oct. 1 enrollment was 3,701, according to state data. The year before that was 3,977.

Superintendent Julie Kukenberger said during last week's School Committee meeting that 176 new students either re-enrolled of newly joined the district in grades 1-12. There were 151 withdrawals.

As of Sept. 10, there were 1,047 high school students, 851 middle school students and 301 kindergarten students.

Kukenberger said there will be monthly enrollment updates on the district website.

"We'll continue to track this data and think of other interesting ways to analyze it as we review our practices for enrollment each year," she said.

Kukenberger also reported 88.7 percent of families got their first choice for kindergarten placement. Nine families didn't get their first, second or third choice — something the superintendent attributed mostly to late enrollments.

Mike Carraggi can be reached at mike.carraggi@patch.com. Follow him on Twitter @PatchCarraggi and Instagram at Melrose Happening. Subscribe to Melrose Patch for free local news and alerts and like us on Facebook.