SANFORD, Fla. — Seminole County Public Schools’ Virtual School saw more than 120 applications on Monday morning after officials extended the school’s application deadline to Friday.

The original deadline had been July 20.

Seminole County Public Schools spokesman Michael Lawrence said in a Monday email to Spectrum News 13 that officials made the move “to accommodate families that were having second thoughts sending their children face-to-face.”

The action comes as the coronavirus delta variant strains hospitals, prompts new safety guidelines among businesses and organizations and sets daily records in Florida for COVID-19 cases.

The spike has driven passionate debate throughout the state whether school boards should mandate mask-wearing for students, especially since the virus appears to be affecting younger age groups compared with previous months.

SCPS’s Lawrence noted that masks will remain optional in the district for the school year that begins Aug. 10. Gov. Ron DeSantis last week issued an executive order that prohibited school districts from forcing students to wear masks, saying the decision should be up to parents.

The Virtual School's enrollment extension gives parents "one last opportunity to make the switch if they're still apprehensive since masks will remain optional on our campuses this school year,” Lawrence said in his email.

At noon Monday, he said, Seminole County Public School’s Virtual School had seen more than 120 new applications in two hours. The school so far has 679 possible enrollments, including 332 applications that are processing, Lawrence said.

The Virtual School last school year had 7,794 enrolled before the number dropped after the first semester when more students returned to face-to-face instruction, he said.

At Orange County Public Schools, enrollment in Orange County Virtual School stood at 2,150 early Monday, spokesman Michael Ollendorff said.

“Applications are still coming in and that number could rise,” Ollendorff wrote in an email to Spectrum News.

OCPS’ Virtual School peaked at 4,500 students last school year, compared with 220 students in the 2019-2020 school year, he said.

Volusia County on Monday afternoon also extended its Virtual School enrollment window. The district announced that the window for full-time enrollees will open Tuesday and close at 5 p.m. Thursday. To apply, go to VolusiaOnlineLearning.com or call 386-506-0014.