HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. — Thousands of Hillsborough County Public Schools students will eventually be zoned for different schools after a 4-3 vote by the school board Tuesday evening.
Superintendent Addison Davis has said the boundary changes will help the district better use its campuses — some of which are overcrowded while others suffer from low enrollment — and save money as a result.
The plan that passed will not be as drastic as a couple of the other plans the district considered. The plan, however, will close five schools and impact roughly 15,000 students starting in the 2024-2025 school year.
“Is it the perfect solution?” asked board member Patti Rendon, who supported the boundary change. “We’re never going to make every single person happy.”
“But what I can say is we have some of the best principals and teachers in the State of Florida, and no matter what school our students attend, they have the ability to get an excellent education,” she continued.
Some board members, however, tried to delay a decision on the boundary change because of the district’s leadership shake-up. Last week, Superintendent Davis announced his intent to resign on July 14.
“I’m not comfortable going forward with this,” said Vaughn. “And I don’t feel like the community is either.”
But the majority of board members, including Lynn Gray, were comfortable with moving ahead with a vote on the boundary change and said it would be unwise to delay.
“This is a situation that needs to be done, whether I like it, or the communities like it, or not,” Gray said.
As forDavis’ replacement — the person who will ultimately oversee the implementation of the boundary change — the board agreed to search for a new superintendent over a period of 12 months.
In the meantime, Van Ayres will serve as the interim superintendent.
“I’m going to give my heart and soul to this school district,” Ayres said Tuesday.
Ayres has been with the district for 26 years as a teacher, principal, and a member of Davis’ cabinet. Ayres said he’d like to keep the job as superintendent, and Davis thinks he would be a great replacement.
“The board may do a national search. You have people internally that have the ability, the skillset, the intellect to continue to do some great things — especially things for children — every single day in Hillsborough County,” Davis said.
In an interview, Ayres said he supports the plan to change the district’s boundaries.
According to a district spokesperson, parents will receive a newsletter Wednesday that will outline more details about the upcoming boundary change.
Since the changes take effect in the 2024-2025 school year, she said parents should have ample time to explore school choice options and visit the new schools their children may now be zoned to attend.
