Orange County Public Schools

Meetings Facts

WHEN: School board meetings usually are held twice a month on the second and fourth Tuesday of the month. All meetings are held in the School Board Meeting Room of the Ronald Blocker Educational Leadership Center, 445 W. Amelia St., in downtown Orlando.

CANNOT ATTEND? Watch live (or replay) on School Board YouTube Channel.

WHO CAN ATTEND: In accordance with Florida's Sunshine Law, all meetings are open to the public, except those dealing with collective bargaining.

 In addition to regular meetings, the board holds work sessions as needed to study and discuss specific issues. Work sessions are open to the public, but the public may not participate in discussions. No formal action is taken at work sessions.

The board also may schedule public hearings as needed to discuss specific issues. Public hearings give community members the opportunity to participate in the discussion of issues before formal action is taken at a board meeting.

WHO CAN SPEAK: If you wish to speak to the board about an action item on the agenda, you must submit a request form during the meeting. Forms are available at the board table in the School Board Meeting Room.

Members of the public can address the School Board on non-agenda topics during its Public Comment Period which is held at the beginning of any regularly scheduled school board meeting. The Public Comment Period begins promptly at 4:30 P.M. and ends at 5:00 p.m. If you wish to address the board, sign up is available in the board room with the School Board Clerk from 4:15 p.m. until 4:30 p.m. Speakers are allowed three (3) minutes to address the board. 

SPEAKER GUIDELINES: 

Public comment on matters subject to any quasi-judicial process or any pending litigation should not be presented to the Board. This includes any issues related to pending investigations or employee or student discipline matters.

• Any public comments on the collective bargaining process or other workplace labor concerns are not permitted. There is a collective bargaining process and system in which bargained issues and labor complaints may be brought to the table between the parties.

• If you seek to comment on matters which are on the school board meeting agenda you will be required to wait until that agenda item is before the board.

• Prospective or current vendors are not permitted to comment during the bidding black-out period.

QUESTIONS: call 407-317-3236.

School Board meeting notices are published in The Orlando Sentinel at least seven days before a regularly scheduled meeting or work session; at least 21 days before a public hearing; and 48 hours before an emergency meeting.

ARCHIVES: A video archive of past meetings is available on the School Board YouTube channel. (NOTE: Work Sessions are audio recorded but not video recorded). Audio recordings are also stored on the Board You Tube channel. or may be acquired by a written records request mailed to OCPS, Records Department, Building 500, 6501 Magic Way, Orlando, FL 32809 or via email records@ocps.net.

All board meetings rebroadcast on Orange TV (Spectrum Channel 488) at 9 a.m. on the Fridays following a board meeting (except during legislative session) and at 7 p.m. on Wednesdays the week after the board meetings.

The board meetings are aired in their entirety with the exception of pre-meeting Public Comment, student discipline and employee matters. In keeping with School Board policy, if a citizen refers to a student discipline case or employee matters while addressing the board, his or her comments will not be included in the broadcast version of the board meeting.

"Current" minutes are the ones most recently approved by the school board. The current minutes can be found here.