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Comprehensive Plan Public School Facilities Element <br />Public School System <br />As required by the state, the School District must implement a financially feasible Five - <br />Year Capital Facilities Plan that provides for school capacity improvements to <br />accommodate projected student growth. Those improvements which are budgeted and <br />programmed for construction within the first three years of the Plan are considered <br />committed projects for concurrency purposes. Within the current Five -Year Capital <br />Facilities Plan, the capacity providing capital improvements consist of one new <br />elementary school. In addition, capacity providing capital improvements are associated <br />with the planned replacement of two elementary schools and the renovation of the Vero <br />Beach High School Freshman Learning Center. <br />As structured, the public school system consists of students, personnel, schools, and <br />administrative facilities. Residential development impacts the students and school <br />facilities because increases in new student enrollment can place demands on school <br />capacity and cause overcrowding of facilities. Therefore, an accurate inventory of both <br />current and projected school capacity and student enrollment is crucial for school <br />planning. <br />Enrollment and CapacitX <br />The Indian River County School District provides the public school facilities necessary to <br />educate its students. Recently enacted state -mandated changes, such as early childhood <br />education and smaller teacher/pupil ratios at each school, significantly impact the <br />capacity needs of the School District. <br />Currently, the School District operates 22 public schools, from pre -kindergarten to 12th <br />grade. In school year 2004/05, approximately 64% of the County's school-age children <br />attended public schools operated by the School District. The remaining 36% attended <br />private schools or charter schools, or were no longer attending school. Students no <br />longer attending school are typically associated with drop-out students over the age of 16. <br />At this time, the School District operates fourteen elementary schools, four middle <br />schools, two high schools, and two alternative education centers. These schools serve <br />nearly 16,000 students. Figure 12.2 shows the geographic locations of the public schools <br />operated by the School District. In Table 12.6, a breakdown of the enrollment and school <br />capacity for School Year 2008/09 is provided. The figures in Table 12.6 exclude charter <br />schools, because charter schools are not operated by the School District. <br />On an annual basis, school capacity figures are determined by the Florida Department of <br />Education (FDOE) and are based on the Florida Inventory of School Houses (FISH) <br />capacity analysis. To determine permanent FISH capacity at individual schools, the <br />School District utilizes FDOE's FISH capacity data, which includes district owned <br />"concretable" classrooms. <br />Community Development Department Indian River County <br />9 <br />