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For the second year in a row, the David Douglas School District in outer Southeast Portland has seen a small decrease in the number of enrolled student.
This year, 10,338 students attend David Douglas schools. That's down from 10,544 in 2015-2016 and 10,770 the year before.
For years, David Douglas has struggled with overcrowding. Now, despite the dip in enrollment, many of its buildings are still packed. But like much of the rest of the city, David Douglas appears to be experiencing the ripple effects of gentrification, with soaring housing prices in East Portland pushing families with school-age children out of the area.
See related: I moved to the edge of Portland to help refugees, but they can't afford to live here anymore.
"We think a lot of families who've moved here in recent years for lower housing costs have since seen those prices rise," says Dan McCue, a spokesperson for the district.
It's too early to say who exactly is replacing these families and how. But anecdotal evidence suggests they're being replaced by single persons and younger couples without kids, who have themselves gotten priced out of neighborhoods closer to the city center.
Related: City Officials Consider Reducing Apartment Construction in East Portland
Charles Rynerson, a demographics researcher at Portland State University, studies school population patterns.
He says a definitive answer will have to wait until U.S. Census data from 2016 is available.
And while he doesn't have quantitative evidence yet, Rynerson tells WW: "I see it, because I live there."