Parents, teachers push back as Broward eyes Coral Springs middle school closures
The gymnasium was standing-room only as elected officials, parents, students and staff made the case for their beloved Coral Springs and Margate middle schools facing possible closure or merging at the district’s final Redefining Our Schools community meeting Sept. 30.
Here’s what you should know.
Why is Broward County considering closing and merging public schools?
School district officials say a decade of enrollment decline and related financial struggles are the main reason they are looking into closing schools, with a 9,987-student drop in the past year alone.
It’s a trend throughout South Florida and across the country , according to the district’s presentation. Data also shows that more parents are choosing to send their children to charter schools, with 20% of Broward County kids attending one as of the 2022-23 school year — a factor that speakers highlighted during past listening sessions across the county.
“Our public schools have been assaulted by charter schools. This is an attack, and a much determined attack on public education,” Margate Commissioner Tommy Ruzzano said during the Tuesday night meeting at Coral Springs High School.
Other residents mentioned how school closures could push more families into charter or other alternative schooling options, worsening the enrollment issues that officials are trying to resolve.
“Our community is incredibly important to us, all of the students and their families. We are very tight knit,” said Lauren Orbesen, a teacher at Forest Glen Middle School. “Our kids, many of them walk and ride bikes to school. I feel that Broward would lose a lot of those kids to charter, which are all much closer to their surrounding neighborhoods.”
Fewer people means less money available for building maintenance, course offerings and teacher pay, among other items.
The district says that over the past 10 years, losing roughly 16% of enrollment has meant losing an estimated $341,811,316 in revenue. Officials say these losses mean tough decisions must be made – with options including “school consolidations, repurposing, and closures to optimize resources” in order to optimize “efficient facility use.”
At the same time, the presentation also mentions expanding different educational pathways for students, including career and technical training, dual language programs and special-interest academies for sports and public safety.
Which Coral Springs schools are being considered for changes?
- Coral Springs Middle School
- Forest Glen Middle School
- Margate Middle School
- Ramblewood Middle School
- Sawgrass Springs Middle School
All five schools are A or B rated and eligible for funding under Title I — a federal program for educational institutions with low-income student populations . It entitles those schools to extra funding from the government to help ensure student success.
Black and Hispanic students also make up the majority of the student body at each school, data shows.
What were parents’ concerns?
Parents described how mergers could impact their children, with concerns ranging from how a 2,000-student middle school could worsen existing problems like vaping, bullying and fighting, to the mental and emotional aspects of the unexpected change.
“Middle school sucks. It is the hardest years of their life, and you are going to make it harder...” said Jennifer Corrello, the parent of a Sawgrass Springs middle schooler. “They’re in a tough spot hormonally, emotionally, mentally, they’re going through a lot, and now you want to rip apart the one thing that’s actually staying with them and their friends, and that’s just not healthy. .”
Later commenters also expressed anger and distrust at the school district. Several cited the high school boundary changes enacted in 2023, which reportedly moved 351 Coral Springs students from Marjory Stoneman Douglas to Coral Glades High School.
“You promised that you were going to come out to our community and pay attention to those kids. And I tell you, you didn’t. You did not. You had to have their parents email you and complain,” said Nicole Kearney, an administrator at Coral Springs Middle School. “In these cases, you’re talking about 8,900 kids. So it’s very concerning to me.”
The problems for parents and students during that period came into the picture, too.
“No tutoring before school, no after school activities, no sports, no debate, nothing, because you have to get to the bus,” said Tiffany Wheeler, whose children were split during the rezoning — one went to Stoneman, and the other two went to Glades. “I actually don’t think that a lot of people knew that they split families up. They did, even though they said they wouldn’t. So I have big trust issues.”
“I’m tired of being asked for our children and our community to be resilient,” Wheeler added.
What solutions did residents bring to the table?
Rolling out a stronger marketing campaign highlighting the schools’ unique programs and opportunities was top of mind, with many parents mentioning that they had no idea how valuable their neighborhood schools were until after their child was enrolled.
Creating a magnet school focused on autistic students, similar to the South Florida Autism Charter School, was another popular idea. Several parents suggested housing the program in an existing middle school that has excess capacity, such as Coral Springs, Margate or Forest Glen — all of which are below 60% capacity this school year, according to documents from the Redefine website.
“We need to start really ensuring that our kids who are differently able have the same access to resources and are able to thrive in this community,” said Coral Springs Vice Mayor Nancy Metayer Bowen .
Other counties in Florida, including neighboring Miami-Dade and Palm Beach, already have these options.
Attendees also questioned why more administrative buildings and roles aren’t being considered for budget-related cuts.
“I understand that there are hard decisions that have to be made, and I do not wish to have to make that decision,” Coral Springs Commissioner Joshua Simmons said. “I know that that’s hard, but I have not heard about any internal cost saving measures being taken into account.”
What’s next?
A tentative calendar for the school board’s preliminary and final decisions is available on the Redefine web page. Dates to keep in mind include:
Oct. 7: School board members receive update on community input and finalize list of schools to be addressed
Oct. 13 - 21: Meetings with communities impacted by finalized list
Dec. 10: Superintendent makes final recommendations to school board
Jan. 13: Special school board meeting to adopt recommendations
This story was originally published October 1, 2025 at 12:12 PM.
