Declining enrollment in Palm Beach County schools forced at least 120 teachers to be reassigned — and could also mean $25 million dollars in state funding cuts.
In recent years, the district has been mostly spared the underenrollment wave plaguing other South Florida schools. But now, there are 6,000 fewer students in Palm Beach County School District schools compared to last school year, about 3 percent of total enrollment.
As a result, the district initiated a hiring freeze and is reassigning teachers from underenrolled schools to ones that are growing.
The student body across Miami-Dade County Public Schools is down by 13,000 students this year and Broward County's enrollment is down by 11,000.
The loss at Palm Beach is mostly attributed to increased use of school vouchers, high cost of living and demographic shifts.
READ MORE: Teachers have left Palm Beach County schools as enrollment has grown
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