Combine SLE into DBE. DBE has higher utilization 47.2%, higher living in boundary attending 41.9%, higher out of boundary attending 40.8%. Over 40% of families CHOOSE DBE. Not because it's nearby and we have to but because we see and feel something at DBE we do not anywhere else. There is a wonderful culture at DBE that the people there make happen day in and day out. The kids at DBE are kind, great kids. You could see it at the dances and talent shows. You can feel it in the hallways. You can hear it in their voices. That is unquantifiable. That is the product of a SAFE school environment made by a great and caring staff.

Combining into DBE raises utilization to 85.8%. A higher utilization brings a larger budget. Programs can expand and be reintroduced. I would like to see dual language and music. The benefits are clear. Research shows these programs strengthen the brain's ability to focus and filter distractions. Case studies have proven kids in these programs grow up to have greater mental resilience, more creative flexibility and improved memory, even delaying the onset of cognitive decline. All things that with the increase of mobile devices and the advent of AI, we all are desperately more in need of.

How about also investing the over 8 million to be allocated for bathrooms back into combining into DBE? This can be done because that money is being allocated for DBE and SLE's transfer into Glades so it's already money allocated for these specific kids. All this will lead to increase utilization not only now but in the future and it will be the first step towards growth as opposed to constant closures. This is our way forward in learning. Don't dismiss this right plan for fear of the future while being stuck on the past without being properly informed. That is negligent. Choose our plan. Choose growth.

You should be fighting to keep kids and families in your public schools, IF you really believe you have the best people to offer. Do you believe that? Or do you just like saying it? Closing DBE is turning your backs on the very same best people you are so fond of saying BCPS offers. Closing DBE is permanently closing the doors on a culture that you will not be able to replace, replicate, nor transfer.

Please consider moving all of Hollywood Park into Sheridan park. We have the capacity to house all students and teachers into our school. This will make the transition much more seamless, as the students will not have to be separated from their friends and teachers. We will also be saving funds on transportation to one school instead of many schools. And in the future, if enrollment picks up, Sheridan Park will also be able to house those new enrollments as well, vs filling the other schools to capacity. Sheridan Park also has an established ESE program, which will save further funds in having to open ESE programs in schools without one. Our PTA program is wonderful for parents wanting to join. And we also have special programs such as STEM and Robotics team, which are wonderful enough to enter into competitions. Art and music are among some of the specials taught in our school, and with more students coming we can add so much more. Please consider this proposal as it makes the most logical sense. Currently, it is being considered to move Sheridan Park students to 3 different schools, and our ESE students to 5 different schools. This is not setting them up for success, elementary school children are the most sensitive when it comes to change. Please let’s consider the option with the least amount of change, moving Hollywood Park into Sheridan Park. Thank you for your time.

I strongly oppose the proposed closure of Dolphins Bay Elementary School.

Placing our youngest and most vulnerable children on a middle school campus is unacceptable. We as parents are left with more questions than answers. There are no concrete plans for our ASD cluster students, and Specialized and Intensive Pre-K students - only vague possibilities. These children need stability, specialized spaces, and consistent support—not uncertainty.

I strongly oppose the proposed closure of Dolphins Bay Elementary School.

Dolphins Bay is a Grade A school that provides valuable programs and services to our community, including specialized cluster classes, VPK, and ESE programs. These are not simply classrooms that can be relocated without consequence. They are programs that serve the unique needs of our children and families.

Merging an elementary school into a middle school should not be an option. Elementary and middle school students have very different developmental, emotional, and educational needs. Our children deserve an environment designed specifically for their age group—not to be absorbed into a completely different school model.

What is also deeply concerning is the lack of transparency throughout this process. Parents and community members deserve clear information, meaningful opportunities to ask questions, and a genuine voice in decisions that will directly affect our children and our neighborhoods.

We are not only parents—we are taxpaying citizens and members of this community. We have invested in our schools, our homes, and our neighborhoods, and we absolutely deserve a seat at the table when decisions are being made about their future.

At the end of the day, the best way to invest in our community is to invest in our children and their education. Closing a reputable, successful Grade A school with specialized programs is not an investment in our community—it is taking away an important resource from the families who depend on it.

Please reconsider this proposal, listen to the families who will be directly affected, and prioritize what is truly best for our children and our community

I strongly oppose the proposed closure of Dolphin Bay Elementary School.
I am the parent of a first grader and a third grader at Dolphin Bay. Our family lives in Coconut Creek, and we attend Dolphin Bay through School Choice. We have options—and we intentionally choose Dolphin Bay because of the education, teachers, leadership, environment, and community this school provides our children.
If Dolphin Bay closes, our family will not simply transition to one of the schools selected by the district. We will pursue other educational options for our children. I believe it is important for the Board to understand that families like mine should not automatically be counted as students who will transfer into another district school as part of a consolidation plan.
Closing a successful and highly valued elementary school is not, in my opinion, a sound long-term strategy. When families are willing to travel outside their own community to attend a particular public school, that should tell us something: this is a school families are choosing—not a school families are trying to leave.

Dolphin Bay is more than a building. It is a community that families have deliberately chosen and invested in. Closing it risks losing students like my children from this community altogether rather than successfully consolidating them elsewhere.
I respectfully ask the School Board to reconsider this proposal and look for solutions that preserve Dolphin Bay Elementary. We should be strengthening successful public schools and giving families more reasons to choose them—not closing them.
Please keep Dolphin Bay Elementary open.

𝙄 𝙛𝙚𝙧𝙫𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙡𝙮 𝙤𝙥𝙥𝙤𝙨𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙘𝙡𝙤𝙨𝙪𝙧𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝘿𝙤𝙡𝙥𝙝𝙞𝙣 𝘽𝙖𝙮 𝙀𝙡𝙚𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙖𝙧𝙮 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙖𝙛𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙢 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝘿𝘽𝙀 𝙨𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙧𝙚𝙢𝙖𝙞𝙣 𝙖 𝙋𝙧𝙚-𝙆 𝙩𝙝𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝 5 𝙨𝙘𝙝𝙤𝙤𝙡.
Dolphin Bay is an A-rated school with several families that are school choice attending. DBE also is renowned for it's ESE programs including Pre-K Intensive & ESE Specialised classes. The culture that exists at DBE is one of excellence, inclusion, and opportunity for our students with disabilities; not every BCPS school has this culture to the degree that DBE has. Throughout this whole process I've found myself thinking, "Does BCPS really care about ESE students? Or is the school board merely taking their presence for granted because these students are less likely to get into charter & private schools?" Because when you seek to close schools that have a great culture for ESE, you're taking that culture for granted and you're taking those students for granted as you prioritise numbers over the care & education for our students with disabilities. BCPS's initial plans didn't even address our youngest & most vulnerable students, our Pre-K Intensive and ESE Specialised babies, that is unacceptable. At Dolphin Bay our ESE and Pre-K students would 𝙣𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧 be treated as an afterthought, where matters pertaining to their class sizes, bus routes, services, staffing, etc would be determined after the school educating & pouring into them was closed.
I strongly advise against shuffling around our ESE students that rely on stability, routine, continuity of services, and a support system of trusted adults & peers that include them. Rather the district should be seeking solutions to the enrollment crisis that are creative & robust in their defense of public education, not "solutions" built on false promises that adversely impact students & drive more families away from BCPS.

Closing Hollywood Park does not change the fact that Sheridan Park is critically under-enrolled and that Driftwood has available seats. We’ll be back in this position next year, throwing the community into upheaval again after settling our students into new schools. The Sheridan Park proposal for closure addresses all opportunities in this neighborhood.

Hollywood Park has a better FCI, better building design (completely enclosed building with interior hallways, protecting our students and infrastructure from the weather), better test scores, a full range of specials (music, PE, media center and art), and is flanked by buildings that provide essential services for families. The proximity of Apollo to HPE allows sibling groups to walk to and from school safely. The proximity to the Boys and Girls Club gives parents a safe place for extended aftercare and community connection, open until 7PM EVERY NIGHT (longer than standard aftercare programs). The B&G Club has a computer lab, basketball court, game room, serves snacks AND supper, and cares for 30% of the students who go to HPE with increased capacity coming soon after renovation of a new building - for only $15/yr.

It’s not only about creating fuller schools - it’s about creating fuller schools with more services and resources that are attractive to parents. An island of a school on a busy, hazardous road is not the same as an A-rated school on the same block as a low-cost aftercare program, a park with a covered playground and a splash pad, a thriving magnet middle school, a community center with a soccer field and a skate park.

This is the only school matriculating 100% into both Apollo and McArthur, creating a seamless Innovation Zone. Looking at the agenda slides for enrollment change from 24-25 to 26-27, both Apollo (-16 students) and McArthur (-30 students) are holding strong with minimal change - this shows you that once students enter this Innovation Zone, they STAY, and it all starts with Hollywood Park. The best marketing is PERFORMANCE!

You can take the amazing staff and students and relocate them, but this is truly a case of “the whole is greater than the sum of its parts”, with the whole including pieces that you can’t pack in a moving box.

I oppose closing Hollywood Park Elementary. I find it a bitter pill to swallow that an A rated school would close, and parents and students do not have a lateral choice in this neighborhood.
If Sheridan Park were to close they would at least be welcomed into higher rated schools.
I cannot imagine the parents who have depended on The Boys and Girls Club for after school care, at very little cost, losing that benefit. There is no lateral arrangement for that in the neighborhood. It's a lot to ask families to sacrifice.
I like the idea of HPE and Apollo being on the same block - families have basically one destination for K thru 8. I like the idea that this could be an education "campus" without having to be in the same building.
No one wants their school to close. We are afraid of change; afraid of the unknown. I wish we could see the vision of how these mergers will occur - to know what will happen to the kids' friends and teachers.
I believe in the public school system. Our family will support our student no matter what happens. We'll continue to be involved in the future, to ensure she has a good education and a meaningful social experience. We believe in Hollywood Park Elementary, where she's already getting those things.

I am a 27-year veteran of BCPS and have served as a Specialized Preschool ESE Teacher in Room 403 at Oakridge for my entire teaching career.
I believe it is important to remember our history. In 2009 a replacement project was removed from the district’s 5 year plan because Beachside went more than $25 million over budget. District facilities officials later confirmed that Oakridge funds were diverted to address the project’s budget constraints.
On September 28, one reason given for closing Oakridge is that it is at its “end of life.” While some portions of the campus are original, much of the school is not. The older areas have also received updates, and our staff continue to provide high-quality learning opportunities despite the age of some areas. "End of life" is what I think when I see students happy and making progress at our school
Do we wish we had more updates? Of course. But do I believe Oakridge is in such disrepair that it needs to close? Absolutely not. Our campus was repainted last year and looks fresh and cheerful. I invite you to walk our campus and see for yourself.
At the Sept. 28 meeting, families expressed their desire to keep their children at Oakridge; specifically our ELL and ESE population. They spoke about seeing their children make progress, positive interactions with staff, grant-funded aftercare, and appreciating that their children can walk to school or easily access campus without relying on a bus. They express concerns about transitioning ASD students to a new campus and being far from the new campus site. These factors should be considered, reflected and presented to the board in a comprehensive thoughts exchange report.
One opportunity to increase enrollment is to expand early intervention opportunities. High-quality preschool experiences prepare our future student socially. They also give families an opportunity to enter BCPS early and, after a positive PreK experience encourages them to remain in the district for kindergarten and beyond.
Oakridge is more than an aging building. It is a community where children learn, families feel supported, and dedicated staff serve students every day.It truly breaks my heart to think this could be my last year in Room 403.

Saving Dolphin Bay Elementary and consolidating Silver Lakes into its campus is the best path forward. Dolphin Bay is an A-rated school, already has 3D mapping in place, and is ideally located to serve families. Let’s build on what’s working, preserve an excellent elementary school, and strengthen our community. Dolphin Bay must remain open as a traditional Pre-K–5 school for the community.

I am writing as a dedicated Mother and resident of this district to express my deep concern regarding the proposed closure of Dolphin Bay Elementary School.
My son, who has special education needs, attends Dolphin Bay specifically because of the critical infrastructure and specialized environment it offers. For children like my son, this school is not just a building; it is a vital support system that cannot easily be replicated elsewhere. My son benefited and continues to benefit from a small cluster with teachers who are educated to meet his needs and the needs of all the other special needs children. My son started out in the intensive Pre-K and now is in 3rd. This school made a big difference. My son started out non verbal and had behavior concerns. Now he can talk say sentence and behavioral is at a minimum. While overall student enrollment may be down, the concentration of specialized expertise, modified spaces, and peer stability at Dolphin Bay makes it highly efficient and necessary for the special needs community. Forcing these students into larger, more chaotic environments at other schools will disrupt their strict routines, trigger regressions, and likely strain resources at the receiving schools. The financial savings of closing this school do not outweigh the educational and developmental costs to our children. I urge the board to look for alternative solutions to balance the budget without dismantling a successful, life-changing education environment.

I oppose the proposed closure of Dolphin Bay Elementary. Dolphin Bay is a successful, A-rated neighborhood school with valuable ESE services—not a failing school. Its enrollment challenge deserves a measurable recovery effort before the District takes an irreversible action.

BCPS’s own presentation estimates only $251,000 in net annual savings from the southwest proposal after added K–8 operating and transportation costs. Meanwhile, converting Glades for elementary students is estimated to cost $7.5 million, but that amount is not included in the financial table’s one-time-cost column. The Board should not close Dolphin Bay based on incomplete financial accounting.

The ESE plan is also unfinished. BCPS acknowledges that staffing, classroom space, program capacity and financial impacts still require evaluation. Pre-K ESE students could be dispersed among multiple schools, some requiring new programs and bus routes. Families deserve guaranteed staffing, services, therapies, transportation and age-appropriate facilities before any transition is approved.

BCPS reports that 320 children living within Dolphin Bay’s boundary attend charter or other district schools. Rather than closing Dolphin Bay, the District should authorize a two-year enrollment-recovery pilot with expanded School Choice and Pre-K access, targeted transportation, a cutting-edge signature academic program, stronger aftercare, multilingual community outreach and quarterly enrollment benchmarks.

Please postpone closure until the parent-survey results are reviewed, the ESE and financial analyses are complete, and Dolphin Bay has been given a fair opportunity to recover. We are not asking BCPS to ignore enrollment; we are asking the District to address it with transparent, measurable solutions before closing a school that works.

Dolphin Bay is a fantastic school where my son graduated and my daughter is studying at this moment. Great infrastructure and teachers! Pls don’t close it!

I oppose the closure of Dolphin Bay Elementary because this decision would create unnecessary disruption for elementary students and their families. Dolphin Bay is an established neighborhood school with a community that families have invested in and relied on. Please prioritize keeping Dolphin Bay open as a traditional Pre-K–5 school and explore alternatives that address enrollment and capacity without closing it.

Keep Dolphin Bay Elementary PK-5 open!

I strongly support keeping our school a traditional Pre-K-5th grade elementary school. This is what many parents in our community are asking for, and our concerns deserve to be heard. We do not feel comfortable merging our young elementary-aged children into a middle-school environment. Elementary and middle school students are at very different developmental stages and have very different academic, social, emotional, and supervision needs. Our youngest children deserve an environment designed specifically for their age and development. This is not an attack on the middle school, its students, or its staff. It is about recognizing that the middle school already has its own challenges, and parents should not be expected to accept placing our elementary children into that environment without clear evidence that doing so will benefit them. Before making a decision of this magnitude, BCPS should demonstrate how this proposal will improve outcomes for elementary students, how younger children will be protected and supervised around much older students, and how discipline, shared spaces, arrival and dismissal, transportation, and extracurricular activities will be handled. Most importantly, where is the evidence that changing an established elementary school into a K-8 campus is better for the children currently attending it? Our children are not numbers on a spreadsheet. Their safety, stability, education, and well-being should be at the center of this decision. There is also an important distinction that must be recognized, converting a middle school into a K-8 campus is not the same as taking an established elementary school and changing it into a K-8 environment. The impact on elementary students and their families must be evaluated separately.
We aren’t asking BCPS to ignore enrollment, capacity, or financial realities. We are asking you to find solutions that don’t compromise the environment our youngest children need. We want a traditional Pre-K through 5th grade elementary school. We want our children to have a safe, stable, age-appropriate, and nurturing environment. We want the voices of the families directly affected by this decision to matter. Please preserve our elementary school as an elementary school.

I respectfully oppose the closure of Dolphin Bay Elementary and ask BCPS to preserve a traditional PreK–5 elementary school at the Dolphin Bay campus.

The early years of a child’s education are foundational to academic, social, emotional, and developmental growth. Stability, continuity, and an age-appropriate learning environment are especially critical for students with disabilities, developmental delays, and specialized learning needs. Dolphin Bay’s cluster classrooms, ESE services, specialized programs, and experienced educators provide essential support to children and families who depend on these resources.

As a parent who has personally witnessed the benefits of Dolphin Bay’s specialized PreK program, I have seen tremendous developmental and communication progress that can occur when children are placed in the right environment with skilled educators who understand their individual needs. These programs should be protected and strengthened—not disrupted.

We also respectfully ask BCPS to consider the developmental differences between elementary and middle school aged children. Developmental and educational theory has long recognized that children progress through distinct stages with different cognitive, social, emotional, and environmental needs. Our youngest students deserve a school environment intentionally designed around their stage of development, where they can feel safe, secure, and supported.

If consolidation is necessary, we urge BCPS to consider merging elementary populations at the Dolphin Bay campus while preserving a traditional PreK–5 model. Dolphin Bay is an A-rated school with specialized programs, experienced staff, and a community where children are already thriving.

Please invest in what is working. Preserve PreK. Preserve specialized/ESE programs. Preserve the traditional elementary experience. We respectfully do not support a K–8 model for our children.

Please save Dolphin Bay Elementary.

Dear Superintendent and School Board Members,
As a proud BCPS product, a Miramar High staff member, and a community member with family throughout Miramar and Pembroke Pines, I propose a strategic alternative for the Southwest Region: Pivoting Pines Collegiate Academy into a premium K-8 Academy instead of continuing its high school expansion.
The current 6–12 model forces Pines into direct, unsustainable competition with deeply entrenched legacy high schools—specifically Miramar, Flanagan, and McArthur. These schools already offer highly successful AICE, IB, CTE, and dual enrollment pathways. Duplicating these expensive programs over-saturates the regional market and actively starves existing 9–12 high schools of student enrollment.
Transitioning Pines into a K–8 Academy solves multiple district-wide dilemmas simultaneously:
1. Fills a Local Elementary Void: There is no traditional public K–5 school in the immediate neighborhood surrounding Pines. A K–8 model brings public elementary seats directly to an area that lacks them, blocking charter networks precisely where families make early enrollment decisions.
2. Eases the Walter C. Young / Flanagan Restructuring: If the district proceeds with the Flanagan 6–12 merger, removing Pines from the high school market entirely prevents regional saturation. This allows Flanagan 6–12 to successfully capture the central Pembroke Pines middle school population without internal competition.
3. Strengthens High School Feeder Pipelines: Instead of competing for high schoolers, a Pines K–8 acts as an "incubation pipeline." Upon finishing 8th grade, students would naturally route to established specialized tracks at designated traditional high schools, such as Miramar’s Aviation and IB programs, McArthur’s Business/Digital Media/CTE programs, or robust regional dual enrollment pathways.
4. Captures Enrollment Early: A public K–8 captures families at age 5 and retains state funding for nine consecutive years, bypassing the middle school transition dip. It also creates an attractive destination to absorb elementary students if nearby under-enrolled schools face closure.
I urge the board to consider this proactive alternative. Thank you for your time and dedication to our community.

Subject: Transparency and Accountability
During our community meeting, many parents questioned the criteria being used to identify schools for closure. Based on the district's own data, Hollywood Park does not appear to face the same challenges as some neighboring schools.
For example, Hollywood Park's Facility Condition Index (FCI) is 22.7%, lower than nearby schools with a score of 39.9%. If facility condition is a significant factor, the community deserves a clear explanation of why a school in better condition is being considered for closure while schools with greater facility needs remain open.
Enrollment data raises similar concerns. Hollywood Park's enrollment has remained relatively stable since 2022-2023 at approximately 400 students, while neighboring schools have experienced larger declines. Has the Board examined why Hollywood Park has maintained enrollment when other schools have not? Enrollment stability should be an important consideration in this decision.
The district's Redefining page also raises questions about projected savings. Do the estimates include the costs of renovating, converting, maintaining, and operating repurposed facilities? If closed school buildings will continue to be used, taxpayers deserve to know the true net savings after all expenses are considered.
The community is also asking what happened to students from previously closed schools. How many attended their assigned receiving schools, how many enrolled elsewhere through School Choice or other options, and how many left Broward County Public Schools? Those outcomes should be evaluated before additional closures are approved.
Finally, many families remain concerned about the potential loss for easy access to the Boys & Girls Club after-care program. For working families, this (almost free) and accessible program is essential, yet it's not addressed on the options fact sheet.
I respectfully ask the School Board and district leadership to provide clear, transparent answers and fully consider these factors before making any final decision regarding Hollywood Park Elementary. Decisions of this magnitude should be guided by objective accurate data, student outcomes, fiscal accountability, and meaningful community input.

Como madre, quiero expresar lo importante que es esta escuela para mi hija y para mí. Mi hija se siente segura, feliz, apoyada y cómoda aquí. Ha creado vínculos importantes con sus maestros, compañeros y con el personal de la escuela, y he podido ver cómo este ambiente ha influido positivamente en su educación, su confianza y su bienestar.

Entiendo que el distrito está considerando redefinir nuestras escuelas, pero considero que redefinir debería significar mejorar y fortalecer lo que ya funciona, no quitarles a nuestros hijos aquello que les brinda estabilidad, seguridad y oportunidades.

El posible cierre de nuestra escuela también representaría grandes dificultades para nosotros como padres. Tendríamos que enfrentar cambios de transporte, horarios de trabajo, distancia, cuidado de nuestros hijos antes y después de clases y reorganizar por completo muchas de nuestras responsabilidades familiares. Para algunas familias, tener una escuela cercana y acceso a los servicios y programas que existen alrededor de ella es una necesidad, no simplemente una comodidad.

Pero más allá de las dificultades que podamos enfrentar los padres, mi mayor preocupación es cómo un cambio así afectaría a mi hija. Cambiarla de un ambiente donde se siente segura, querida, apoyada y donde está progresando significaría quitarle una estabilidad que ha sido muy importante para su desarrollo académico y emocional.

Considero que una de las mayores responsabilidades de nuestro sistema educativo y de quienes toman estas decisiones es proteger el bienestar y el mejor interés de nuestros niños. Por eso les pido que, al tomar decisiones sobre Redefining Our Schools, no consideren únicamente números o edificios; consideren también a cada niño, a cada familia y las consecuencias reales que estos cambios pueden tener en sus vidas.

Redefinir nuestras escuelas debería significar construir sobre lo bueno que ya tenemos, no perderlo. Como madre, no quiero menos para mi hija. Quiero que pueda continuar creciendo, aprendiendo y sintiéndose segura y feliz en una escuela que ya es parte importante de su vida.