The Brief
- Orange County Public Schools is experiencing a major drop in enrollment, with 7,000 students absent.
- Nearly half of the absent students come from immigrant families concerned about safety and immigration enforcement.
- The district faces millions in lost funding and will use an official October student count to guide future budget decisions.
ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – Thousands of students have not returned to Orange County Public Schools this year, and the district faces millions of dollars in lost funding as enrollment declines.
What we know:
Orange County Public Schools is seeing a significant decline in student enrollment this year, with about 7,000 students not attending classes — roughly double previous projections. …