Success Academy’s move into five Miami-Dade high schools could lead to layoffs

Education admin October 15, 2026 0 Comments

Success Academy’s move into five Miami-Dade high schools could lead to layoffs

Miami-Dade schools’ , the controversial “Schools of Hope” charter operator set to co-locate in five district high schools next year, could lead to layoffs, say school district officials.

At Wednesday’s school board meeting, they passed an item approving the agreement and giving preemptive authority to the district to lay off up to 133 employees. They estimate that co-location will cost the district up to $7.9 million for the 2027-28 school year, which is why the district wants to be able to reduce positions if needed.

The item included language pointing out that the school board and the district are obligated to accept the arrangement with the New York City-based charter school under Florida’s newly-expanded “Schools of Hope” law.

Success Academy plans to open charter elementary schools in unused space in five district high schools – North Miami Senior High, Hialeah-Miami Lakes Senior High, Homestead Senior High, Miami Jackson Senior High and Westland Hialeah Senior High.

Success Academy disagrees with framing the school as a “cost” to the district, according to a statement from CEO Eva Moskowitz sent to the Miami Herald.

“This agreement will have zero financial impact on the district. It is entirely about giving parents the freedom to vote with their feet and choose high-quality education for their children—a core value in Florida that this district actively upholds,” Moskowitz wrote.

The school board passed the measure without discussion, though a handful of citizens made statements questioning it during a public comment period.

The Schools of Hope law requires districts to make underused and ”persistently low-performing” schools available to be occupied by approved charter operators, often at a low cost. Miami hedge fund billionaire and philanthropist Ken Griffin pushed for expansion of the law and gave the charter school network $50 million for its Miami expansion.

Failure to approve the operations agreement would result in a loss of nearly $6.3 million annually, according to the district.

District estimates suggest that enrollment at each of the five Success Academy campuses is expected to hit 332 students. By their fifth year, the district expects the campuses to have up to 798 K-5 students.

In a public comment, Lisette Fernandez, co-founder of the advocacy group Moms for Libros, said she recognized that “state law has put this board in a corner.” However, she asked for more fiscal impact analysis for the following years.

One student from an affected school spoke out against the measure.

Sebastian Santiago, president of the Student Government Association at Westland Hialeah Senior High, spoke out against the planned Success Academy campus at his school given that the school consists of one large building and not multiple – making it harder to separate elementary school students from high school students.

He asked the board to consider finding a way to “preserve campus integrity”

“Our traditional public high schools are not empty holding vessels for charter expansion, but community hubs that require full investment for the students who call them home. When we sacrifice our campus square footage, we compromise the everyday experiences of students who rely on our facilities for learning, extracurricular activities, and a secure environment,” Santiago said.

Phrasing of the agenda item makes clear that its passage does not equal an endorsement by the school board.

“School Board approval of this item does not reflect or constitute a finding of need, justification, or endorsement for any charter school proposed in this item, but rather reflects Board consideration of statutory requirements,” the item reads.

The language mirrors what board members said in their April meeting when they approved the co-location agreements: to a large extent, their hands are tied.

“Elections have consequences,” former District 1 member Steve Gallon, a Democrat, said at the time. “We may not like it, we may not agree with it, but we have to respect it.”

This story was originally published October 14, 2026 at 4:34 PM.