FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The first of seven town hall meetings with the Broward County Public Schools superintendent was on Monday in Hollywood.
Superintendent Howard Hepburn said he received “a lot“ of feedback from the community at Hollywood Hills High School.
Hepburn talked about the possibility of closing Olsen Middle in Dania Beach, Oakridge Elementary in Hollywood, and Broward Estates Elementary in Lauderhill.
“We can come up with the best options,” Hepburn said. “It is not going to make everybody happy. These are tough decisions that affect families.”
The proposed plan did not sit well with Julie Burger Shannon. She works as an exceptional student education specialist at Oakridge Elementary School.
“We are extremely shocked and also disappointed,” the teacher said. “We were never included in any preliminary conversations.”
Several other schools identified in five zones would be combined, have a boundary adjustment, or be repurposed to expand community services.
The district also presented a second proposal known as the “total district realignment plan,” which Hepburn opposes. It would match the number of seats per student prompting 42 schools to close.
The goal remains to eliminate excess seat capacity districtwide. One of the proposals would redraw all school boundaries and eliminate magnet programs.
School board members are set to vote on a final plan on June 18. The process is set to take years and there won’t be any changes during the 2024-25 school year.
“I want to make sure I support a plan that looks at all of Broward,” said Daniel P. Foganholi, the school board member representing District 5.
NEXT 6 TOWN HALL MEETINGS
The next meeting with Hepburn will be in District 4 at 6 p.m., at J.P. Taravella High School, 10600 Riverside Drive, in Coral Springs.
The meeting at District 5 is at 6 p.m., on May 1, at Dillard High 6-12, at 2501 NW 11 St., in Fort Lauderdale. The meeting at District 3 is at 6 p.m., on May 6, at Fort Lauderdale High School, at 1600 NE 4 Ave.
The meeting at District 2 is at 6 p.m., on May 7, at Charles W. Flanagan High School at 12800 Taft St., in Pembroke Pines.
The meeting at District 6 is at 6 p.m., on May 8, at Western High School, at 1200 SW 136 Ave., in Davie. The meeting at District 7 is at 6 p.m., on May 9, at Deerfield Beach High School, at 910 Buck Pride Way.
For more information about the meetings, visit this page.
PRESENTATION SUMMARY
According to a presentation Broward County Public Schools released on Monday night, the district plans to close some schools due to under-enrollment.
The presentation reported the utilization was under 55% and the district’s leaders were considering closing 42 schools — including 32 elementary schools, eight middle schools, and two high schools.
The presentation only identified 26 of the 32 elementary schools, four of the eight middle schools, and none of the high schools.
The district is holding seven town hall meetings from Monday to May 9. The vote on the final plan is June 18.
Here is the list:
ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS
- Oakridge (Close)
- Broward Estates (Close)
- Silver Palms (Boundary change)
- Silver Shores (Repurposing)
- Silver Lakes (Boundary change)
- Panther Run (Program shift)
- Hollywood Central (Grade reconfiguration)
- Collins (Boundary change)
- Mary M. Bethune (Boundary change)
- Stirling (Boundary change)
- Hollywood Hills (Boundary change)
- Colbert (Boundary change)
- Thurgood Marshall (Boundary change)
- Sunland Park Academy (Boundary change/Grade reconfiguration)
- Westwood Heights (Boundary change)
- Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Montessori Academy (Boundary change/Program change)
- Plantation (Boundary change)
- Bennett (Repurposing/Program change/Full choice school)
- Harbordale (Boundary change)
- Virginia Shuman Young (Repurposing/Boundary change/Program change)
- North Fork (Repurposing/Full choice school)
- Walker (Boundary change)
- North Side (Boundary change)
- Deerfield Beach (Public-private partnership P3)
- Quiet Waters (Public-private partnership P3)
- Tedder (Public-private partnership P3)
MIDDLE SCHOOLS
- Olsen (Close)
- Pines (Grade reconfiguration)
- Attucks (Boundary change)
- McNicol (Boundary change)
According to the presentation’s slide on page 18, these schools were part of the total district realignment: Annabel C. Perry PK-8, Beachside Montessori Village, Dillard 6-12, Lauderhill 6-12, Millennium 6-12 Collegiate Academy, and Parkway.
Presentation on April 29, 2024