Alachua County Public Schools launches “comprehensive school planning initiative”

Press release from Alachua County Public Schools

ALACHUA COUNTY, Fla. – Alachua County Public Schools (ACPS) is launching a comprehensive, community-wide initiative to develop a long-term school planning strategy that positions local public schools for future success. The initiative will include extensive engagement with families, students, educators, and community members to ensure the final plan reflects the community’s priorities. 

The initiative, titled ‘Our Schools—Future Ready,’ will address several critical issues, including enrollment and school capacity, transportation, educational programs, and more. Community input will guide the development of the plan, which is expected to be finalized and approved in mid-March. The plan will outline both short-term strategies for the start of the 2026–27 school year and a long-term roadmap to support strong schools across the district. 

“For the first time, Alachua County Public Schools is aligning school programs, student attendance boundaries, and school facilities into one, unified, districtwide strategy,” said Superintendent Dr. Kamela Patton. “Through this plan, the district will right-size its facilities, freeing up resources to enhance educational programs, improve facilities, and increase teacher/employee pay.”

The district provided an overview of the Our Schools—Future Ready initiative during a School Board workshop earlier today. The presentation outlined the purpose of the initiative and the process for developing and implementing the plan.

ACPS is partnering with Gainesville-based engineering and planning firm JBPro to support the initiative’s implementation. This includes coordinating at least 16 community engagement sessions and creating additional opportunities for public input. Several members of the JBPro team are parents of current or former ACPS students.

“As a 30-year business owner in Alachua County and as a parent whose children graduated from Alachua County Public Schools, I understand how essential strong public schools are to the future of our community,” said JBPro President Jay Brown. “By working together with our residents, families, students, educators, and local leaders, we can shape educational programming, site location decisions, and facility strategies that truly benefit our schools and serve our students well.”

The first set of community engagement sessions have already been scheduled for early- to mid-December. Anyone is welcome to attend one or more of the following sessions, all of which will run from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.:

• Thursday, December 4: Mebane Middle School Media Center
• Monday, December 8: Eastside High School Media Center
• Tuesday, December 9: Oak View Middle School Cafeteria
• Wednesday, December 10: Westwood Middle School Multipurpose Room
• Thursday, December 11: High Springs Community School Cafeteria
• Monday, December 15: Buchholz High School Media Center
• Wednesday, December 17: Kanapaha Middle School Cafeteria
• Thursday, December 18: Hawthorne Middle High School Media Center

A second round of community engagement sessions will be held in the spring once a draft plan is developed. Additional input opportunities — including meetings with school staff and students, pop-up activities at community events, and online engagement tools — are also being planned.

“JBPro’s personal connection to Alachua County’s public schools is why we are so committed to listening openly to the full community as we plan for facilities and educational programs that support every learner and ensure families throughout the county have high-quality, accessible options for their local schools,” said JBPro’s Planning Director Kathie Ebaugh.

“We encourage everyone to take part in this exciting initiative, because we all have a stake in the success of our local schools,” said Dr. Patton. “We know the people of Alachua County recognize that strong schools are the foundation of a strong community.”

A website with more information about the initiative is at alachuaschools.net/ourschoolsfutureready. It will be regularly updated with reports from each community engagement session, progress on the initiative, proposed recommendations, and more.