It was expected to cost the school district as many as 4,000 students, but far fewer left Indianapolis Public Schools this year, even though four schools were taken over by the state.

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IPS announced that 30,128 students are enrolled for the 2012-2013 school year, a drop of about 1,500 students from last year. Though the official number is lower than an internal count conducted by IPS, Superintendent Eugene White was thrilled with the number. "This is good news and shows the district is headed in the right direction. Our families and students had choices to make, and a majority of them chose to remain with us," said White in a statement released by the school district. IPS had been losing an average of about thousand students annually in recent years.

The state turned over Manual, Arlington and Howe High Schools and Emma Donnan Middle School to private companies this summer after each school received a grade of F from the state for six consecutive years. At the state school board meeting in August, the four schools reported that enrollment was, for the most part, increasing since the beginning of the school year.

"This adds to our stability. We will continue to build from here and continue to increase our enrollment," said White.