BROWARD COUNTY, Fla. — Over the past 10 years, Broward County Public Schools has lost nearly 40,000 students, Superintendent Howard Hepburn said, a decline that equates to more than $350 million over the same period.
“Our footprint has been too large for the amount of students that we currently serve,” Hepburn said.
Hepburn is standing by his push to close schools and shift boundaries in an effort to save millions.
“We targeted low-enrolled schools. Those schools haven’t had an influx of students for quite some time,” he said.
Wednesday night, the Broward County School Board voted to close six schools because of declining enrollment. After emotional pleas, Bair Middle School in Sunrise was the only school spared.
On Friday, Local 10 sat down with Hepburn inside Hallandale Beach High School.
He said part of the school’s boundary will shift west of Interstate 95, reassigning some students to Miramar High School. Hallandale will also transition to a four-day-a-week magnet school.
When asked how many more schools Broward County might need to close or consider for closure over the next one to two years, Hepburn said, “As it sits today, we have more than 50,000 open seats in Broward County. We will come back to the board in May, look at trends for enrollment at different schools and identify schools to target for additional discussion about next steps. It may not always be closures.”
A day after the vote, Sunshine Elementary parents expressed frustration over plans to move their children to Fairway Elementary.
To address confusion, Hepburn said the district will increase communication and hold meetings with students, staff and parents at impacted schools.
Asked what families should take away from the cuts, closures and redistricting, Hepburn said, “This is going to help our district and our county be stronger.”
He added, “Our graduation rates are the highest in 25 years. In the midst of all of this change and challenges our teachers and our principals are doing amazing work for our students and that will continue.”
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