Orange County Public Schools loses 40 workers after Haitian TPS ruling
ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. —
Forty Orange County Public Schools employees are without a job following a federal court ruling involving Temporary Protected Status for Haitians living in the United States.
A federal judge last week allowed the Trump administration to end Temporary Protected Status protections. The decision affected 40 OCPS support staff members, most of whom worked in food services, according to the district. One was an hourly employee, and another was a program specialist.
“I think it is actually a huge loss for our school district and for our community,” OCPS School Board member Stephanie Vanos told WESH 2.
Vanos said the employees played important roles in supporting students and keeping schools operating each day.
“These are people who are serving our schools. They are serving our students,” she said. “They are the ones every day making sure our students have what they need.”
The district learned about the employment issue at the end of July, Vanos said. OCPS has since filled the vacancies ahead of the start of classes, due to recent school consolidations and some employees seeking other positions, which helped the district cover the openings.
In a statement to WESH 2, Orange County Public Schools wrote:
“While Orange County Public Schools was directly impacted by changes to Temporary Protected Status (TPS), affecting 40 employees, the district does not anticipate any reduction in services to students or schools. Although the loss of any staff member is felt across our schools and community, the recent consolidation of seven schools has created staffing flexibility that allows the district to fill these positions with existing personnel. As a result, we do not anticipate any disruption in services to our schools or families.”
Still, Vanos said the loss extends beyond the school system because of the Haitian community’s presence in Central Florida.
“People don’t realize just how many Haitian community members we have here,” she said. “They are the jobs that make our communities tick and make our communities what they are.”