Pace Center for Girls Volusia-Flagler — a year-round program for at-risk girls and young women — will close its Ormond Beach education center on June 26.
The day program, which includes schooling, will be transitioning to Pace’s Reach program, which continues to provide counseling services, but not education, according to a news release.
Pace Center for Girls has operated in Volusia County since 1996, and serves girls from both Volusia and Flagler counties.
“This decision was incredibly difficult and made only after a thoughtful review of the program’s long-term sustainability, including enrollment trends, staffing, academic outcomes, and financial viability,” said Yessica Cancel, interim CEO of Pace Center for Girls, which has programs in close to 20 locations across Florida and Georgia.
Girls will be connected to community-based counseling and mental health resources to ensure continuity of care, the news release states.
Pace officials are also working with “impacted team members and community partners to connect them with employment opportunities in local schools and other organizations,” the release states.
Pace students in Volusia will transition to new schools
Volusia County Schools has announced it is working closely with the Pace Center to ensure girls have a school and personalized support plan.
Teaming with Pace Executive Director Sheila Jordan and her staff, the Volusia district has begun coordinating transition plans for each student.
The district said girls transitioning from Pace to traditional public schools or charter schools will meet their principals, tour their new campuses ahead of the first day, and participate in one-on-one meetings with school counselors.
“No student will walk through the door on day one without a team already in her corner,” Superintendent Carmen Balgobin said in a Volusia schools news release.
“Every student who walked through the doors of Pace did so because she had the courage to ask for something different,” Balgobin said. “Volusia County Schools will make sure that courage is met with the right support, structure, and people to help her thrive. We are not waiting for these young women to come to us. We are going to them.”
What is the Pace Reach program?
After the girls transfer from the soon-to-close Pace school, the organization will offer them continued counseling through its Reach Program starting in fall 2026.
Pace describes its Reach program as “a therapeutic model designed to meet girls where they are and provide accessible mental-health services, early intervention, and individualized support in the community.” Pace says additional details regarding the program launch will be shared in coming months.
“Our priority has always been the girls,” Cancel said. “We are committed to helping each girl continue her education journey and access the support she needs to thrive. We are also encouraged to continue serving this community through Reach in a new and meaningful way.”
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Pace Center for Girls to close, students to transition to new schools
Reporting by Mark Harper, Daytona Beach News-Journal / The Daytona Beach News-Journal
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