August is National Back to School Month! The New River Valley (NRV) region’s public schools will be returning to classes throughout the month of August and college students will return back to the universities. Based on the census data, approximately 19% of the region’s population is “school aged” defined as five (5) to nineteen (19) years old. The Virginia Department of Education documented that 21,753 students were enrolled in all the region’s public K12 schools in Fall 2021. The NRV also boasts a higher average graduation rate (95.85%) than the whole of Virginia (93%).
Virginia Tech and Radford University attracted over 46,000 students to the region in 2021. As a percentage of population, 27% of New River Valley citizens hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. New River Community College serves approximately 4,300 students, of which 37% are full-time.
As you travel in the region throughout August, be mindful of increased traffic and pedestrians in and around school zones and campuses.
For more regional demographic data, visit https://nrvrc.org/data. Can’t find what you are looking for? Email Joy Rumley, jrumley@nrvrc.org, with your inquiry and information needs.