ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — Students at seven Orange County Public Schools were in class for the final time on Wednesday. Those students will be moved into other schools in the fall.
Orange County leaders said they were forced to make this decision due to financial constraints and a significant decline in enrollment.
“This is their last time in their school,” Scott Howat, the Chief Communications Officer for OCPS, said. “They may have spent three or four years at the school.”
Howat said Wednesday was a tough day for the district.
Seven schools will officially close their doors and never reopen. In part due to the universal school voucher program, which allows public funds for private or alternative education.
“The school voucher program is that working how it is designed to?” Channel 9’s Sam Martello asked. “The ones that do have, in certain areas, where there is choice, there has been some of that movement due to the vouchers,” Howat said.
Howat also cited declining birth rates, lower housing turnover, and changes in immigration policies. All of which, he said, are turning opportunities to learn into a fight to keep up.
“We’re in a time of competition. It is incumbent upon us to communicate with our parents what we have in Orange County Public Schools,” Howat said. “Whatever programs we’re offering, opportunities we’re offering, we need to market those.”
The district projects enrollment could continue to decline. Which means future school closures could be possible.
“I think that’s not off the table,” Howat said. “We have to look at every scenario, every situation. There are schools out there that are still under-enrolled.”
The district is scheduled to open two more schools next school year in high-population and fast-growing communities in the area. Beyond those, the district said there are no more plans to build more schools.
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