It may be mid-Summmer but Miami-Dade is already prepping for first day of school

MIAMI – It may be the middle of summer but in Miami-Dade, the district is already preparing for the first day of class.

More than a thousand teachers, principals, and educators gathered at Miami Dade College on Wednesday to learn what’s new for the upcoming school year.

“It’s always nice to see all of our hard work from the summer come to fruition,” said Samantha Caesar, an administrative assistant at Homestead Senior High School.

She had some tips ahead of the first day.

“Make sure you get some rest. Eat breakfast and come with an open mind,” said Caesar.

In the middle of summer, they are already getting ready to welcome back students come August.

One of the biggest challenges teachers are preparing for is summer slide.

“There are teams in every school that are coming together, so they develop blueprints,” said Superintendent Jose Dotres.

He spoke about enrollment and other numbers they are starting to look at.

“We have kids coming in and coming out but we feel that enrollment is stable. Unlike some of the losses that maybe other school districts have experienced,” said Dotres.

While enrollment is stable, he said over the last few years they’ve watched the number of immigrant students go up and expect the same this year.

“So we welcome any newcomer into our schools. We’re prepared,” he said.

When it comes to teacher shortages they’ve seen in the past, they’ve added four programs to help combat that.

“We are really hoping and counting on having fewer vacancies than in prior years,” he said.

The district is holding a career fair on Saturday, July 13 from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. at John A. Ferguson Senior High School.