Lima Reporter

There were 663 first grade students enrolled in Mercer County schools in the 2022-23 school year, 18.2% more than the previous year, according to reports from the Ohio Department of Education & Workforce.

Celina Primary School welcomed most of the first grade students in the county, registering 173 students.

Within Mercer County schools, the highest student count was found in first grade, with the smallest class sizes seen in pre-kindergarten.

Statewide, Mercer County ranked 44th in enrollment numbers, with a total of 7,564 students enrolled in the 2022-23 school year. It was also ranked 44th the year before.

In 2022, Ohio saw an average student-to-teacher ratio of approximately 1:15, which is an improvement for the state and is lower than the national average of 1:16.

Despite the apparent improvement, this positive trend is overshadowed by a general decline in public school enrollments, which was accelerated by the pandemic. This decline, aligned with the steady number of teachers in the state over the last 10 years, has led to low student-to-teacher ratios.

School name	# of 1st Grade Students Enrolled	% of Student Body	Total Enrollment
Celina Primary School	173	33	525
Coldwater Elementary School	140	23	609
Marion Local Elementary School	102	15.4	661
Fort Recovery Elementary School	92	18	510
St. Henry Elementary School	86	19.4	444
Parkway Elementary School	70	17.5	399
Celina Middle School	0	0	411
Celina High School	0	0	756
Celina Elementary School	0	0	350
Celina Intermediate Elementary School	0	0	339
Coldwater High School	0	0	344
Coldwater Middle School	0	0	387
Marion Local High School	0	0	244
Parkway Middle School	0	0	292
Parkway High School	0	0	274
St. Henry Middle School	0	0	273
St. Henry High School	0	0	272
Fort Recovery Middle School	0	0	186
Fort Recovery High School	0	0	270