Orange County District to Open 5 New Schools

Orange County Public Schools in Orange County, Fla., will open five new schools in August to accommodate rising enrollment figures, according to a news release.

The district plans to open three new elementary schools (Hamlin Elementary, Panther Lake Elementary and Stonewyck Elementary), one middle school (Hamlin Middle School) and one K–8 school (Kelly Park School). The five schools have combined total capacity of 5,000 students and bring the district’s total number of schools to 210, the ninth-largest in the U.S. The K–8 facility, Kelly Park, will absorb future growth in the area, the news release reports.

The construction project cost an estimated $156.2 million and created 1,155 jobs in the area. All schools were built according to Green Globes environmental construction standards, reports the news release.

The district will host a series of open houses before the schools open for the semester.

About the Author

Matt Jones is senior editor of Spaces4Learning. He can be reached at [email protected].

Featured

  • Big Horn Academy

    Big Horn Academy

    Established in 1999, the Education Design Showcase is a vehicle for showing off innovative — yet practical — solutions in planning, design, architecture, and construction. Big Horn Academy has been recognized with an EDS 2026 Project of Distinction award in the category of New Construction.

  • Architectural Power for the Modern Campus Landscape

    For generations, an outdoor classroom only required a textbook and a patch of grass. Today, not only has the laptop replaced the printed pages, the rise of agile learning has turned campuses into study halls with students listening to lectures and researching topics from quads, gardens, and plazas. The challenge for architects and facility managers is to provide connectivity without cluttering the landscape with visual eyesores or creating safety hazards with extension cords.

  • KWK Architects Announces Full Transition to Lawrence Group Branding

    KWK Architects recently announced that it will complete its transition to the Lawrence Group brand effective July 1, according to a news release. The merger marks the end of a three-year strategic integration process that began in March 2023 to unite the firms.

  • Campus Safety Requires Using Every Resource Available

    Across the U.S., school and campus leaders are facing a security landscape that has changed dramatically over the past decade. Incidents on school property have increased in recent years, with several consecutive years setting record totals. According to analysis of data by CNN, dozens of shootings now occur on school grounds annually across K-12 and higher education environments.