Orange County Public Schools welcome students back amid enrollment decline

Local and state education leaders joined students Tuesday as Orange County Public Schools kicked off the new school year at Pershing School in Orlando. Superintendent Dr. Maria Vazquez was joined by school board member Alicia Farrant and Florida Education Commissioner Dr. Henry Mack for the first day of classes. The celebration came as Orange County is among several Florida districts grappling with budget challenges driven, in part, by declining enrollment. The district has cited declining birthrates, housing trends, federal immigration policies and expansion of Florida’s school voucher program as contributing factors to the drop in student enrollment.