- May 12, 2025
Volusia County Schools officials once again reiterated that Ormond Beach Elementary is not "on the chopping block" and will not close.
The rumor was initially discussed by the School Board at its meeting on April 8, where School Board member Donna Brosemer said district staff informed her OBE could close, and that had led her to find a solution to attract more students to the school. She announced the school would become an arts magnet school, which incited backlash from fellow School Board members who felt such decisions should not be made by an individual. Superintendent Carmen Balgobin also denied having any conversations about school closures.
At the board's April 22 meeting, Balgobin reiterated her statement.
"What I said on record then I'm going to say again — is that none of us have had any discussions about any schools in particular that are being that we were looking into closing," Balgobin said. "So I will say that again, because that's what I said to some of the parents, the principal, but also community members. But if I had to add up the amount of time that I spent fielding and answering questions, It's an enormous amount of time."
Her team, she said, is committed to the school district and its students. Balgobin called Brosemer's statements "irresponsible behavior."
"When it comes to making decisions for children, it is irresponsible not to have all of the facts or the full picture before we share information out there in bits and pieces," she said.
While she said she appreciated that Brosemer is asking questions behind-the-scenes and disseminating appropriate information to her constituents, Balgobin said "politics and personal agendas" do not have a place in the school district.
"It should always be about kids first," Balgobin said.
The superintendent wasn't the one who brought up the topic again during the meeting's closing comments. School Board member Krista Goodrich did, saying that "alarming claims" were made at the last meeting, ones "not rooted in fact."
"Let me be clear, I believe that any staff member that is deliberately spreading misinformation to board members needs to be held accountable, whether that means discipline, reassignment or termination," Goodrich said. "There's simply no place for that behavior in our district. It's an unacceptable waste of taxpayer dollars and time to have this community chasing down conspiracy theories and fake news."
Ormond Beach Elementary is historically significant, and also significantly overcapacity, Goodrich said. The school has a capacity of 294 students, but currently has 363 students enrolled, according to data from the Florida Department of Education. It's also been an "A" school for the past few years.
The high enrollment is a strong indicator the school is in demand, Goodrich said.
"Families move to that area specifically to attend that school, and that speaks volumes," she said. "When we're looking at the budget and evaluating schools, we would be absolutely reckless to look at numbers alone. To suggest otherwise is short sighted, but at the same time, if we ignore enrollment and capacity when analyzing our budget, that would be just as irresponsible."
Four board members, the superintendent and key district staff have all confirmed the school will not close, Goodrich said.
"The idea of some backdoor conspiracy to close the school is not only unfounded, it's a distraction from the real work that we need to be doing," she said.
