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Orange County Public Schools updates board on strategic plan; community eligibility to continue providing free meals
Summary
School leaders presented progress on the division’s strategic plan — including internships, career planning, recruitment and retention — and confirmed continuation of the Community Eligibility Provision that provides free breakfast and lunch to students.
Superintendent Dr. Hornick and division staff presented quarterly updates on the strategic plan, reporting work across five focus areas including instructional programming, safe learning environments, stakeholder engagement, recruitment and retention, and technology.
Judy (strategic‑plan lead) summarized the plan’s role as a division roadmap and said teams set measurable targets and action steps. Instructional leaders reported progress on career readiness: the division expanded internships and work‑based learning substantially (internships increased from 8 to 25 students in the period cited), added a sixth‑grade career fair and plans to expand career fairs to sixth through eighth grades at each middle school.
On student supports and safety, staff reported preliminary improvements in chronic absenteeism at several schools (for example, Lightfoot declined from 5.7% to 4.4% year‑to‑year) and noted final absenteeism and behavior reports will be presented at the next meeting when state submissions are finalized.
On staffing, HR reported increases in properly licensed and endorsed teachers (an 11.87% improvement over two years) and highlighted retention as a continuing focus; division targets include raising staff salaries to the median of comparable divisions by June 2028. HR said staff‑discount cards and employee engagement surveys (through PlanForward) are among retention strategies.
Julie (nutrition director) briefed the board on the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP): the division will continue to offer breakfast and lunch at no charge through the 2028–29 school year using the 2023–24 certification data while final numbers for the current year are compiled. Julie said the CEP provides a reimbursement mix (example rates cited from 2023–24) and that the program ensures students receive meals without charge for the coming years.
Board members thanked staff and asked for continued public reporting on targets and a public dashboard. Staff said they are developing systematic displays to track progress and will provide quarterly updates.
