‘Hope they’re hearing us.’ Pines community voices worry at last school meeting
At the final community meeting for Broward County Public Schools’ “Redefining Our Schools” initiative, parents, teachers, students and alumni pleaded with district leaders to protect schools in Pembroke Pines that are being considered for major changes.
The Thursday, Nov. 13, meeting at Miramar High School marked the last stop in a three-series tour of regional stakeholder sessions, as the district prepares to finalize proposals that could close, merge or restructure dozens of schools across the county.
The initiative, introduced in 2024, seeks to address what county officials describe as a severe, long-term decline in enrollment, a drop of nearly 10,000 students in just the past year, and more than 37,000 over the past decade.
“These are the realities we are faced with,” said Dr. Valerie Wanza, Chief Strategy and Innovation Officer, who led the presentation. “When you lose 10,000 students, that’s the equivalent of five high schools.”
According to district data, the enrollment decline has resulted in a loss of over $90 million in funding in the past year, and more than $340 million over 10 years, affecting programs, staffing and the district’s ability to operate under-capacity campuses.
Because state funding follows student attendance, the district said the financial impact has become increasingly difficult to absorb.
During the meeting, attendees had the chance to take part in a Thought Exchange inquiry, an online platform the district used to collect real-time community feedback. Participants were asked three questions, could submit comments and were able to read what others in the room were saying and rate those responses on a five-star scale.
Each school could pick three speakers to address the board and offer recommendations or concerns.
But parents from Pembroke Pines argued that closing strong, established public schools could accelerate the decline the district is trying to reverse.
Pembroke Pines-based school changes
For Pembroke Pines, there are nine schools in the city, including Chapel Trail Elementary, Panther Run Elementary and Walter C. Young Middle, which are under consideration for mergers, repurposing or boundary changes.
One of the proposals discussed involves merging Chapel Trail Elementary and Panther Run Elementary, which are located about 3.5 miles apart and have both seen significant declines in enrollment since 2017.
Chapel Trail currently serves 541 students at 51.3% utilization, while Panther Run serves 290 students at 37.3% utilization. Nearly half of the students within both schools’ boundaries attend charter schools instead.
Families urged the district to reconsider, saying it could cause a strain on Exceptional Student Education services for students with special needs and what they called an unnecessary loss of a successful school community.
Janet Delgado, a Panther Run teacher of 20 years, said the school has already built a model for inclusive learning that could be expanded without closing its doors.
“Expanding this success into a school within a school for students with autism run by BCPS would strengthen our community and redefine what inclusive education looks like,” Delgado said. “We already have the experience, the staff and the heart to make it happen. Keeping Panther Run open means building on proven success, not starting over somewhere else.”
Concerns also centered on Walter C. Young Middle School, which has a student deficit of 668 and is operating at 49.4% capacity.
One of the strategies proposed by the district would split the school’s boundaries along I‑75, sending 75 students who live west of the highway to Silver Trail Middle and 351 students who live east of I‑75 to Pines 6-12 Collegiate Academy.
Many parents said they oppose sending sixth-, seventh- and eighth-graders to a 6-12 campus because they are worried about bullying and exposure to older teenagers.
For parents like Nichole Ibrahim, the stakes are high enough to consider leaving the city entirely.
Ibrahim, who moved her family to Pembroke Pines specifically for its public schools, said closing Walter C. Young would uproot families and undermine neighborhood stability.
“When we start closing our quality schools, we start pushing families to other areas,” Ibrahim said. “You are going to lose more families if you take away a strong public school option.”
Ibrahim argued that the value of Broward’s traditional schools cannot be replaced by charter options.
“As much as they’ll try to tell you a charter school system can provide quality education, it’s not the same level. It doesn’t have the same public input,” she said. “You’re really losing a lot of that value.”
Still, she expressed appreciation for the district’s willingness to hear from the community.
“I hope they’re hearing us,” she said. “I appreciate that this isn’t being done behind our backs.”
School board member Debra Hixon emphasized that the review is not a judgment of the schools themselves.
“We know your schools are amazing — your principals, teachers, students,” Hixon said, speaking to the entire room. “We’re not here to debate that today, we’re here to figure out together how to make these tough decisions.”
What comes next?
A School Board workshop to review final recommendations is expected in December, along with Superintendent Howard Hepburn’s formal memo indicating his recommendations.
Wanza also said that in the coming weeks, parents would be granted an extension on school choice deadline beyond Dec. 19, to accommodate the impending changes.
The board is set to take a final vote in January, with any approved changes taking effect in the 2026-27 school year.
This story was originally published November 14, 2025 at 12:28 PM.
