A decision by the Broward School District to move many graduations from off-site venues to high school gymnasiums is generating fierce opposition, with many parents, students and elected officials expected to speak out at a School Board meeting on Wednesday.

School Board Chairwoman Sarah Leonardi declined a request by board member Adam Cervera to place a late item on Wednesday’s agenda to reconsider the graduation venue decision, which was announced on Jan. 14. But Leonardi told the South Florida Sun Sentinel that Superintendent Howard Hepburn plans to discuss the matter Wednesday morning, and board members will be able to discuss the matter. She told the Sun Sentinel Editorial Board on Tuesday that she will also allow people to speak during a time reserved for general public comment.

School district policy says the board must set aside time for five public speakers in the morning for non-agenda items and five in the afternoon during regular School Board meetings. The morning spots were already filled up prior to the controversy, but more speakers can be added at the discretion of the board chair, and Leonardi told the Sun Sentinel Editorial Board on Tuesday that she plans to do that.

“Anyone who has seen me run a meeting as chair would know that I do not limit public comment for people who sign up and show up to speak, so I look forward to hearing that feedback,” she said on Tuesday.

Board members say they have gotten numerous emails and phone calls since the district announced plans to hold most ceremonies in gymnasiums on the campuses of Dillard High in Fort Lauderdale, Blanche Ely in Pompano Beach and Pompano Beach High School. In the past, most of these ceremonies were held at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts, the Lauderhill Performing Arts Center and the Rick Case Arena at Nova Southeastern University in Davie.

District officials estimate that holding these ceremonies in-house will save about $500,000.

The 11 largest graduation classes will still be held at off-site venues with the two largest, Cypress Bay High in Weston and Marjory Stoneman Douglas High in Parkland, scheduled at Hard Rock Live at the Seminole Rock Hollywood. The other nine will be at NSU.

School district officials have argued that the gyms planned for graduation are top-notch facilities that are all larger and better equipped than a standard high school gym, including having individual stadium-style seats.  However, the largest, Dillard High, can only hold 2,500 guests, compared with 3,796 for NSU. That could result in fewer tickets for each graduate.

All graduating seniors are guaranteed at least four tickets, but seniors whose ceremonies are held at NSU are all expected to get at least five tickets each, with the exception of Western High in Davie, which would only get four due to its large size, a district analysis shows.

Students at Cooper City High, which has 551 seniors, would be at Dillard High and get four tickets, while Nova High in Davie, which has just seven more seniors, may get six tickets per graduate, the analysis shows.

Board members voiced support for in-house graduations during a budget workshop in October, but it was initially expected to only affect smaller high schools. The cutoff was later increased, which resulted in several medium-sized to large high schools, including Cooper City, South Plantation, Fort Lauderdale and Sunrise in Davie, getting assigned to Dillard High’s gym.

Broward School Board members were emailed the list in December but were instructed to not disclose it for a few weeks.

“Please do not publish or share it with the community,” Valerie Wanza, chief of strategy and innovation, wrote to School Board members and some administrators on Dec. 18. “The final schedule will be published across the District and community in January.”

.@browardschools made big changes to graduation schedules w/ no public input. Board publicly agreed to put classes <500 at high school gyms in Oct., but it got changed to <556, adding 8 big schools. School Board got list Dec. 18 but was told to keep it secret, email shows. 1 of 3 https://t.co/PKVym44p2k pic.twitter.com/dleDc1oHNB

— Scott Travis (@smtravis) January 17, 2026

Elected leaders from some affected cities told School Board members that had they had known the district couldn’t afford the same graduation venues as last year, they would have helped find alternatives.

“I’ve probably had 20 city commissioners call,” School Board member Allen Zeman told the Sun Sentinel on Sunday. “It was a big outcry. I got calls from people who want to try and find solutions, not just complain.”

Among those who have voiced concern are Fort Lauderdale City Commissioner Ben Sorensen, Cooper City Mayor James Curran and Sunrise Deputy Mayor Jacqueline Guzman, who’s the parent of a senior at Piper High School.

“I strongly urge the District to reconsider this decision, engage the public transparently, and implement a fair, district-wide graduation plan that ensures every graduate is celebrated equally — without disparity, without downgrade, and without inequity,” Guzman wrote to School Board members on Tuesday.

Zeman said he’s interested in considering options.

“I do believe that this event is the culmination of 13 years of hard work,” Zeman said. “And maybe we can’t afford the high-end venues, but maybe we can go to those venues and ask for a discount, because we’re literally so underfunded that we can’t afford them. So, I’m hopeful that we can find a better solution.”