District to repurpose vacant role into school-choice specialist to help families navigate options

District staff proposed converting a vacant student-engagement clerical position into a professional school-choice specialist to advise families, coordinate enrollment and streamline interactions for home education, virtual schooling and scholarship programs.

Assistant superintendent and presenters described the position on June 24 as a reallocation rather than a new FTE: "This is not asking for a new allocation, but rather to flip that current allocation to doing different duties that we believe will better suit our needs as a district and for the community," a presenter said during the discussion. The job description increases education and experience requirements and shifts duties from clerical paperwork to outreach, counseling, and program coordination.

Why it matters: district officials said the specialist would provide a single point of contact for families exploring school-choice options — from full-time district enrollment to iFlagler, dual-enrollment, PEP scholarships and home education — and help ensure families make informed decisions about diplomas, course access and billing. Staff emphasized the position will also help the district recapture enrollment where appropriate and ensure accurate invoicing for courses taken by choice-program students.

Role and responsibilities: the job would include advising families on program policies, helping register students, coordinating invoices for a la carte course enrollment, explaining scholarship mechanics such as PEP, and serving as liaison to community partners and homeschool cooperatives. The position would work with principals and departments to provide a consistent point of contact.

Board reaction and next steps: board members supported the concept and suggested the specialist also serve as the district’s liaison for school-choice monitoring, including tracking shifts that affect school capacity and funding. Staff said they will post the revised job description and recruit candidates with classroom or enrollment experience, and will return with details about recruitment and launch timing.

Ending: board members said they expect the role to improve family service, reduce process confusion and help district staff follow up with families who choose nontraditional options.