Hillsborough County's public school enrollment is projected to shrink so much the district plans to build only one school in the next five years.
The state predicts Hillsborough will lose more than 6,500 of its 193,000 students between now and 2016, district facilities officer Cathy Valdes told the Hillsborough School Board on Tuesday.
It's not because of dipping population but because of the high number of students expected to attend charter schools and use state scholarships to attend private schools, she said.
The state Legislature took steps this session to expand charters and other alternatives to public schools.
It allowed high-performing charter schools, which are public schools allowed to operate independently of many state rules, to increase their enrollment by adding more grades or opening branches without school board approval.
The Legislature also increased the number of students who can use McKay Scholarships to attend private schools.
The state is projecting the largest drops will be in Hillsborough's middle and high school enrollments, while it expects Hillsborough's elementary numbers to rise slightly. Most of the rise will be in south Hillsborough, where the district plans to build a new elementary school. One new middle school is planned for Central Tampa in 2016-17.
The district received no construction or repair funds from the Legislature this year. But it has enough for $225 million in major maintenance and renovation in the next five years, Valdes said.
In other business:
- Valdes explained plans to raze a two-room building and shore up another one at Bryan Elementary in Plant City because of a sinkhole.
- The board approved a new property tax rate, which is required for the district to receive state education funding.
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