Frisco ISD trustee calls for apprenticeships amid enrollment decline, teacher turnover

Frisco ISD trustee Stephanie Elad is pressing for more high school apprenticeships as the Collin County district works through declining enrollment and teacher turnover. Access Frisco will bring about 360 out-of-district students into classrooms next school year, even as the district has projected a $17 million revenue loss for 2025-26 tied to the enrollment drop.

Frisco ISD, once one of the fastest-growing districts in Texas, is now landlocked and built out. Frisco ISD has 62,713 students across 76 campuses, including 44 elementary schools, 19 middle schools and 13 high schools. State data for 2023-24 put total enrollment at 65,151. Frisco ISD discussed teacher retention and deficits at a 2023-24 budget workshop.

Elad brought a confidential engagement survey to help reduce turnover and better understand staff concerns.

She also argued that Texas high schools should expand trades apprenticeships, especially in plumbing and HVAC, because those paths can pay $60,000 to $70,000 within a year or two of graduating without college debt. An Indeed job search page listed 302 plumbing jobs in the county and 231 plumbing apprentice jobs, while Workforce Solutions North Central Texas lists openings in plumbing, welding, CNC operation, industrial maintenance mechanics and electrical work.

The district’s Career and Technical Education Center offers career-focused programming, and Frisco ISD posted in October 2024 about its Aspire transition program for students ages 18-21, which teaches independence and workplace skills. The Texas Workforce Commission runs an official Apprenticeship Program, and the Frisco Economic Development Corporation includes workforce development in its mission.