ORLANDO, Fla. — Orange County Public Schools announced their intent to move forward with a consolidation plan that would see several schools close.

▶ LISTEN TO ORLANDO’S MORNING NEWS EXPRESS PODCAST ON WDBO

The Orange County School Board met Tuesday for a special meeting, at which they agreed to begin the rezoning process for families at the seven schools being considered for closure.

The list of schools includes one middle school and six elementary schools: Bonneville Elementary, Chickasaw Elementary, Eccleston Elementary, Meadow Woods Elementary, McCoy Elementary, Orlo Vista Elementary, and Union Park Middle School.

READ: EXCLUSIVE: OCPS Superintendent Dr. Maria Vazquez joins ‘OMN’ to discuss proposed school closures

The decision comes as OCPS faces both significant financial constraints and a decline in enrollment. The district reports that, over the past four years, enrollment has dropped by nearly 9,000 students.

As for the district’s finances, OCPS is facing a $40 million budget shortfall, which the consolidation proposal seeks to offset with the closure of the seven schools.

READ: OCPS considers closing 7 schools because of a significant drop in enrollment

In an exclusive interview with WDBO on Orlando’s Morning News, Orange County Superintendent Dr. Maria Vazquez stated that this decision is not an easy one, nor is it one that “crept up” on the school district.

“We have been monitoring our declining enrollment for the last three years when we started to see the trend, [and] we have tried different strategies to try and bring back some of our families," Dr. Vazquez said.

Dr. Vazquez cited a multitude of reasons as to why the district believes enrollment has declined, including the movement families aging out of communities; a preference for the Florida Empowerment Scholarship; lower birth rates; and a lower number of immigrant families moving to the area.

READ: Governor on Charter schools and the District: ‘It’s not gonna be a fiscal drain on them’

“In order for us to be able to continue to provide all of the services to our students, we are having to consider the consolidation of some of our schools,” Dr. Vazquez said.

No final decisions have been made regarding school closures, and the district plans to hold another meeting at the beginning of the new year.

Should those schools be closed or consolidated, the process will be completed by the 2026-2027 school year.

In her interview with WDBO, Dr. Vazquez assured listeners that conversations will be had with local families to ensure a smoother transition.

“We will go out to each of [the schools on the consolidation list] in January, and we will provide the responses to the questions [families] have asked us, as well as share the decision of the Board,” she said. “If the decision is for us to redistrict, then we will share where those students would be going to if the school if the school were to be consolidated. That will happen in January.”

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