Miami-Dade, Broward consider school closures as enrollments decline

The Palm Beach Post | by Sarah Perkel | May 28, 2026

Key Points

• The biggest five school districts in Florida, including Miami-Dade and Broward, have collectively lost about 67,000 non-charter students from 2023-2024 through 2025-2026.
• Collectively, the Broward and Miami-Dade school districts lost 38,702 non-charter students from 2023-2024 through 2025-2026.
• Both Miami-Dade and Broward school districts are considering closing or repurposing schools due to enrollment drops.

The biggest five school districts in Florida, including Miami-Dade and Broward, have collectively lost about 67,000 non-charter students from the 2023-2024 school year through the 2025-2026 school year.

That’s according to figures compiled by the Lee County school district, provided in May as part of a discussion surrounding its “budget realignment.” The numbers are as of February 2026, and refer to total membership for grades from PreK-12.

From 2023-2024 to 2024-2025, Miami-Dade Public Schools lost 6,947 non-charter students and gained 1,331 charter students. From 2024-2025 to 2025-2026, the district lost 15,288 non-charter students and gained 428 charter students. In February, the district had 232,617 non-charter students enrolled for the 2025-2026 year, along with 86,802 charter students.

In Broward, meanwhile, the district lost 9,512 non-charter students from 2023-2024 to 2024-2025 and gained 68 charter school students. From 2024-2025 to 2025-2026, the district lost 6,955 non-charter students and 1,328 charter students. The district had 185,864 non-charter students enrolled at the start of the 2025-2026 year, as well as 48,460 charter students.

Collectively, the Broward and Miami-Dade school districts lost 38,702 non-charter students from 2023-2024 through 2025-2026.

Miami-Dade County could close or repurpose nine schools for 2026-2027 academic year

Miami-Dade County Public Schools is weighing closing or repurposing nine schools ahead of the upcoming academic year.

According to NBC6, due to declining enrollment, the school board will vote on a proposal to close or repurpose nine schools in June. In January, the Broward County School Board decided to close seven public schools, which Superintendent Dr. Howard Hepburn called one of several “cost saving measures,” essential for a district that he said had lost over 40,000 students in the past 10 years, or over $30 million in revenue.

The Miami-Dade County School District had 313,220 students enrolled at the start of the 2025-2026 school year, down around 13,000 from the start of the 2024-25 school year. It’s a dip that WLRN previously reported has been frequently attributed to Florida’s expanded voucher program, which allowed for the rapid growth of charter and private schools. Miami-Dade County officials, however, said the drop is due to fewer immigrant families moving to South Florida.