MIAMI BEACH, FLA. (WSVN) - Miami-Dade County Public Schools welcomed Rafael Villalobos as its new superintendent at an installation ceremony in Miami Beach on Tuesday.
Villalobos took the opportunity to address the community and lay out his agenda for the upcoming school months.
“So as superintendent of M-DCPS, it is my obligation, it is my duty to make sure parents and students have all of the resources that they deserve,” he said. “Our students deserve the best, our families deserve the best. We want your input, we want you to come to our community meetings, we want to have those discussions with you, because at the end of the day, this is an effort that we all share.”
Villalobos, who had previously spent his 30 year career in M-DCPS, succeeded superintendent Jose Dotres in a unanimous vote by the school board.
He has inherited one of the nation’s largest school systems during a time of enrollment declines, budget pressures and political scrutiny over public education.
Villalobos said that he is working to bring students back into the public school system. However, this year, there has been a shortage of 15,000 students for traditional public schools.
“When you look at enrollment, we’re right now, we were about three and a half, four thousand students under what we had estimated, but everyday our enrollment continues to increase,” he said.
Villalobos outlined priorities to guide the district’s efforts to support student achievement, strengthen community partnerships and prepare students for success, as he has paused a process that could lead to closure or other major changes at two dozen under enrolled public schools.
“We put a pause on it because I really want to assess all of the schools. I want to assess how the schools were selected and I want to make sure that we have a greater understanding, not only among all of our community, but also among our staff,” he said.
Villalobos highlighted the importance of the future of students as he embarked on his new journey as superintendent.
“Our future is our children and that is the most important thing we have to offer,” he said.
Villalobos did not rule out the option of adjusting the district’s budget mid-year, as the district did last year due to declining enrollment.
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