FORT LAUDERDALE, FLA. (WSVN) – Declining enrollment numbers at South Florida over the years has taken a massive toll on school districts trying to stay afloat. Numbers for the new year in Broward County have bolstered board members\u2019 arguments that further closures may be unavoidable.<\/p>\n
The 2026-2027 school year marks the largest dip in enrollment numbers for Broward County in the past five years, which has seen a steady decline in students.<\/p>\n
According to officials, enrollment at traditional and charter schools plummeted by more than 12,000 this year. Charter school enrollments alone make up more than 2,000 of those empty seats.<\/p>\n
As the number of students enrolled in the district continue to decline, board members are looking at another round of closures after shuttering six campuses last school year.<\/p>\n
A new plan being weighed by the district would shutter an additional 10 schools facing low enrollment.<\/p>\n
Officials have been holding a number of workshops with the community to discuss the future of those on the chopping block:<\/p>\n
Silver Lakes ElementaryDolphin Bay ElementaryOakridge ElementaryHollywood Park ElementaryWalter C. Young MiddleWilliam Dandy MiddleLloyd Estates ElementaryBanyan ElementaryCoral Springs ElementaryForest Glen Middle<\/p>\n
Over the past five years, the district has lost more than 27,000 students.<\/p>\n
Concerned parents have tried to ask officials to pin down why this massive exodus has seen no signs of slowing down amid worries of endless closures.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s been a lot of focus on closing schools or absorbing schools to meet the decline in enrollment rather than finding what is the cause of our decline,\u201d a speaker at one of the district\u2019s workshops said.<\/p>\n
In August, Superintendent Howard Hepburn pointed to the higher cost of living in Broward, coupled with declining immigration and birth rate numbers as the main cause.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd I think the affordability and the birth rate are definitely a correlation. Also immigration policies, many of our newcomers are not coming to the country right now, which South Florida is a hotbed for immigration. And also the advancement of school choice,\u201d said Hepburn.<\/p>\n
Similar problems have plagued Miami-Dade County Public Schools.<\/p>\n
Miami-Dade has seen a drop of nearly 16,000 students in their school system.<\/p>\n
Officials there have also weighed possible closures to address the massive decline in enrollment.<\/p>\n
As for Broward, the school board will be holding another workshop to continue discussions on possible school closures with the public on Tuesday at 9 a.m.<\/p>\n
Copyright 2026 Sunbeam Television Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.<\/p>\n
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