Although the district has not seen abnormal growth, six of the 17 Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools facilities are over capacity.
Of these five, four are elementary schools, according to data from Kevin Morgenstein Fuerst, coordinator of student enrollment for the district.
Capacity levels vary from 118 percent at Seawell Elementary School to 86 percent at Frank Porter Graham Elementary School, showing an enrollment disparity in the schools.
Elementary facilities as a whole, however, are only 34 students over capacity.
Fuerst said the differences in enrollment are partially due to the fact that state-provided projections for population growth were inaccurate for the area.
“Projections are normally within one percent of the district outcome,” Fuerst said. “However, very small things can impact in a very big way.”
Seawell Elementary, which currently houses 84 more students than it was intended to, is using mobile classrooms that are not included in the school’s calculated capacity to meet the additional need.
“Even though we are overcrowded beyond our capacity, we’re not feeling it as in the past,” Principal Marny Ruben said.
Ruben said Seawell, which is home to the district’s gifted and pre-school programs, could not offer its additional classes without mobile classrooms.