Orange County schools enrollment drop exceeds state projections

Olivia TylerORANGE COUNTY, Fla. —

Orange County Public Schools reported a significant enrollment decline of nearly 7,700 students during the first 10 days of the school year.

That number exceeds the state of Florida’s projection of just over 2,000.

Superintendent Dr. Maria Vazquez said the decline is due to multiple factors, including school choice vouchers and declining birth rates.

At a school board meeting this week, Vazquez revealed that VPK enrollment numbers are down significantly, with the greatest losses occurring at the elementary level.

Middle and high school enrollment has also declined. She noted that OCPS is not the only district facing this issue.

“Miami-Dade is down 19,000, Broward is down, I understand Palm Beach is also down,” Vazquez said.

Vazquez explained that the district’s budget team had anticipated a larger loss than the state projections and adjusted the budget accordingly.

“The good news is we are not going to see the number of layoffs that you would see with almost an 8,000 loss of students. There will be some,” Vazquez said.

She added that some schools within the district have seen an increase in enrollment, and adjustments will be made to reflect those changes.

The district plans to explore different avenues to retain and attract families, including promoting microschools, which it intends to pitch more of in the near future.