Redefining Our Schools

• Wednesday, August 7, 2024 – City Manager/Mayoral Roundtable
  Initiative Update - July 18, 2024  |  June 18, 2024
  
  
• Thursday, February 8, 2024, at 6 p.m.  – Fort Lauderdale High School
  Watch February 8, 2024 Community Conversations about Redefining our Schools
  
  
• Thursday, February 15, 2024, at 6 p.m.  – J.P. Taravella High School
  Watch February 15, 2024 Community Conversations about Redefining our Schools
  
  
• Thursday, February 22, 2024, at 6 p.m.  – Charles W. Flanagan High School
  Watch February 22, 2024 Community Conversations about Redefining our Schools
  
  
• The District held seven Town Hall meetings from April 29 until May 9.
  Watch April 30, 2024, Town Hall Redefining our Schools presentation | Watch April 30, 2024 Town Hall About Redefining our Schools Presentation

Redefining our Schools is a priority for the School Board of Broward County, FL. The Board has directed staff to evaluate the need and engage the community in developing recommendations.

See the tentative Board meeting schedule below, which is subject to change.

School Board Workshops are non-voting meetings where the Board discusses education matters. Members of the public are encouraged to provide input virtually or in-person to inform the Board’s discussion.

• Wednesday, March 20, 2024 – Redefining our Schools Part 1 (Presentation | Enrollment and Demographic Data) 
• Tuesday, May 14, 2024 – Redefining our Schools Part 2 (Presentation)
• Wednesday, May 29, 2024 – Redefining our Schools (Presentation)
• Tuesday, August 27, 2024 – Redefining our Schools (Presentation | Exhibits 1-3)
• Tuesday, October 8, 2024 – Redefining our Schools (Presentation)

The Board will review and vote on the Redefining our Schools proposal at a June School Board Meeting (date to be determined).

• Tuesday, April 16, 2024 – Redefining our Schools Update (Presentation)
• June, 2024 – Redefining BCPS: Proposal review and vote on Superintendent’s recommendation

Broward County Public Schools is under-enrolled by nearly 50,000 students (including centers but excluding portables), this number signifies the amount of vacant seats relative to the District's permanent capacity, with future enrollment expected to further decline. Simply put, the District is operating more schools than it has students to fill. This creates a resource drain that negatively impacts students attending under-enrolled schools. Redefining our Schools is about ensuring schools are properly resourced to provide high-quality instruction and enrichment for every student in every classroom across the District.

School districts across the country are using a range of strategies to address declining enrollment. The approaches listed below are some common strategies. Broward County Public Schools will research the applicability of these options along with other ways to better serve students and the community.

• Combining schools: Merge two under-enrolled schools to provide better instructional resources. Examples could include combining two elementary schools, creating a K-8 or 6-12 or other grade configurations.
  
  
• Repurposing schools: Convert all or part of a school to provide specialized educational or community services. Examples could include an education center (i.e., career & technical, early learning, special education), health services, dental services, workforce training, senior services, youth programming, recreational spaces and more.
  
  
• Leasing or selling: Lease or sell District properties to address other community needs, such as affordable housing
  
  
• Closing schools: Should a school close, the District will ensure students are re-assigned to another school where their educational needs can be better met.
  
  
• School boundary changes: Change the school attendance zone by adding or removing neighborhoods assigned to a specific school.

There is not a predetermined list of schools. The District has committed to getting input from the community first before making recommendations about specific schools.

Redefining our Schools will involve a range of considerations, including data and community input, to ensure recommendations are equitable. Additional factors may be identified through District and community planning. Please note: The District is in the process of comprehensively analyzing data. No single data point will drive decision-making on possible school changes.

Factor	Data Resources	Description
Enrollment	Under-enrolled schools	List of schools under 70% of capacity utilization
Enrollment	Planning Tool	Enrollment trends, and percentage of: over or under school enrollment capacity; in-boundary and out of boundary; exceptional student education programs; and preschool classes.
Enrollment	Student Enrollment Counts	Student Enrollment Counts
Enrollment	Student Enrollment Data by City	Residing Students by City Attending and Not Attending Their Home Boundary Schools
Enrollment	2023/24 School Benchmark Data	School benchmark, enrollment, capacity and diversity
Enrollment of Surrounding Schools	Private School Reports	Private school reports
Enrollment of Surrounding Schools	Other Choice Options	Other choice reports
Competitive Analysis of Non-District Schools	Under development	TBD
Neighborhood Demographics	Demographics	Enrollment statistics, trends, and research about residents of Broward County
Facility Conditions	Facility condition assessment in progress	Assessment of structures, building envelopes, mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems and roofs.
School Performance	School Data	School grades, graduation rate, advanced placement, attendance, discipline and more.
School Operational Costs	Under development	TBD
Survey Data	Under development	TBD
Initial Redefining Criteria	Initial Redefining Criteria	This spreadsheet provides data across all schools Districtwide for key consideration criteria, including but not limited to school enrollment, capacity, performance, historical significance, and facility concerns. This data sheds light on areas needing attention, potential resource challenges, and potential opportunities for restructuring. However, no single data point drives decision-making, and the district is committed to ensuring recommendations are equitable.

Redefining BCPS is a multi-year process. In June, the School Board of Broward County will vote on short-term opportunities to right-size the District. No changes will be made for the 2024-25 school year, as additional planning will be required to ensure changes meet community needs.

Redefining BCPS will take the entire community. BCPS seeks to partner to offer specialized education programs, work-based learning experiences, affordable housing and enhanced community and health services. If you are interested in becoming a partner, please email redefiningbcps@browardschools.com