Around the state: A report concludes that 645,000 public school seats in the state are unfilled, 9 of 10 central Florida school districts are reporting declining enrollments this year, Brevard's school board votes today on a nearly $568,000 settlement to a lawsuit over the former policy for speakers at board meetings, Seminole schools are ordered by the Trump administration to end a program that helps Latino students graduate, and Duval's school board will vote today on a proposed deal to sell the district headquarters and buy a new building. Here are details about those stories and others from the state’s districts, private schools, and colleges and universities:
Central Florida: Nine of 10 central Florida school districts have fewer students now than they did at this time last year, according to preliminary reports from school officials. Orange (7,000 fewer), Osceola (1,815), Seminole (1,600), Volusia (995), Brevard (5,632), Flagler (133), Lake (358), Marion (376) and Polk (319) have all lost students. Only Sumter shows an increase, with enrollment up 375. The districts attribute the declines to the state's universal school program. Central Florida Public Media.
Duval: School board members are expected to vote today on a proposal to sell the district's riverfront headquarters building for $20 million and buy a building almost 10 miles to the south for $13 million. The deal has been recommended by Superintendent Christopher Bernier, but some school board members have questioned the financial arrangement, which will allow the HQ buyer to pay $12.5 million in the third quarter of 2026 and the rest three years after that, while the district would pay the full price for the new HQ at closing Dec. 31.
Florida Times-Union.
WJAX.
Pinellas: The district officially opened the
Dr. Michael A. Grego Leadership Institute last week. Named after the previous superintendent, the institute replaces an abandoned church in Largo and offers space for training, leadership retreats and collaborative events. St. Pete Catalyst.
Pasco: Chasco K-8 Community School in Port Richey is the home of a new food pantry open every Tuesday from 8:30 a.m. to noon to allow families to shop for free. "We give them bags so they can choose only what they want, only what they use, and everything is free," said Nathan Shocklee, parent coordinator at the school. "Other places give them boxes, but sometimes they get things they don't like. What I'm trying to do is make it like shopping at Publix for them."
Suncoast News.
Brevard: School board members will vote today on a proposal to pay nearly $568,000 to settle a lawsuit that alleged their public comment policies violated the First Amendment rights of public speakers at board meetings. The suit was brought by the Moms for Liberty Brevard chapter. In January, a federal judge issued a temporary restraining order against the comments policy. Almost $542,000 of the settlement will go to the Institute for Free Speech, and about $26,180 will go to the lawyers who represented Moms for Liberty.
Florida Today.
Seminole: District officials have been ordered by the Trump administration to end a program that helps Latino students graduate because the district "may be discriminating based on race." The "Latinos in Action" courses that had been offered at 10 high schools in partnership with a national nonprofit will be replaced with a "Leaders in Action" program. Orange's and Osceola's school districts also have the Latinos in Action program but have not been notified by the federal government, but Broward's
did and has shuttered its program.
Orlando Sentinel.
WFTV.
Manatee: Superintendent Laurie Breslin, who has been on the job about a month, said in an interview that her immediate goals are to build trust and engage with the community, provide support for teachers, boost student literacy, enhance career readiness, and incorporate new technology. "It’s really important to me to rebuild any trust that has been lost," said Breslin, an apparent reference to the firing of superintendent Jason Wysong for his handling of teacher misconduct complaints. "We’ve already started retraining all school leaders, and we’ll also work on teachers," she added. Bradenton Herald.
Lake: Three school construction projects have been completed recently, and the renovation of Beverly Shores Elementary in Leesburg is expected to be finished in August 2026. Other projects in the pipeline include a new high school and a new elementary school in the south part of the county, upgrades to Eustis High School and Eustis Elementary School, and renovations at Oak Park Middle, Leesburg Elementary and Treadway Elementary.
WKMG.
Leon: Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier has joined 20 other state attorneys general in signing a friend-of-the-court brief supporting Leon County parents who sued the school district, alleging employees violated their parental rights when they spoke to their child about a gender support plan without informing them. January and Jeffrey Littlejohn have lost their case in two federal courts, and are now asking the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene.
USA Today Florida Network.
Florida Phoenix.
News Service of Florida.
Flagler: A special education paraprofessional who works with the blind and visually impaired at Old Kings Elementary School in Flagler Beach has received statewide recognition. Suzanne Carter was chosen by the Florida Association for Education and Rehabilitation of the Blind and Visually Impaired as the winner of the 2025 award for outstanding achievement by a paraprofessional.
Daytona Beach News-Journal.
Okeechobee: Eight district high school students and their school bus driver were taken to a hospital for treatment Monday morning after the bus and a vehicle collided on State Rt. 70 just northeast of Okeechobee. None of the injuries were considered life-threatening. WPTV. WPEC.
State's empty seats: More than 645,000 classroom seats in Florida district schools sit empty, according to analysis conducted by the Florida Charter Institute at Miami Dade College in partnership with Momentum Strategy & Research. The report concludes that those school seats could be used by charter schools to save money for districts, since charters are also public schools. Florida Charter Institute.
Opinions on schools: A combination of policy changes, alongside further investment in district and school-level math coaches and safe AI tutoring platforms, can help Florida move from being a math laggard to a math leader in the next decade. Patricia Levesque, Orlando Sentinel.
