Florida’s Budget Includes ‘Record’ Teacher pay, Student, and Workforce Education Investments
June 3, 2022 Updated 9:59 A.M. ET
TALLAHASSEE (FLV) – Florida Commissioner of Education Manny Diaz applauded Florida’s budget that includes “record investments” in per-student funding, teacher pay, and workforce education.
The budget raises per-student funding to $8,143. This is the highest amount of per-student funding in Florida’s history and is an increase of $710 since the 2018-2019 school year.
The Department of Education said the budget provides $29 billion for PreK-20 education. The budget brought the average starting teacher pay in Florida to more than $48,000 for the first time in Florida’s history.
“Governor DeSantis is focused on the issues that really matter to families, like making sure their children learn in school, are not indoctrinated, and have the ability to succeed once they graduate, and with the Freedom First Budget, he is once again putting students first,” Diaz said.
The Florida Department of Education provided these budget highlights:
-$13.6 billion in state funding for the Florida Education Finance Program (FEFP) for K-12 public schools, raising per-student funding to $8,143, which is the highest amount of per-student funding in Florida’s history and an increase of $710 since the 2018-2019 school year.
-A record $800 million, an increase of $250 million, to continue raising the teacher minimum base salary, as well as salary increases for veteran teachers and other eligible instructional personnel. With this investment, Florida has committed over $2 billion in new funding to teacher pay since 2020.
-A record $579 million to support workforce education programs ensuring Florida is the number one state for workforce education by 2030. With this investment, Florida has now invested more than $5 billion in workforce education since the 2018-2019 school year.
-A record $396 million for school safety and mental health initiatives.
-$202.5 million to support literacy achievement.
-Full funding for implementation of progress monitoring aligned with the newly adopted B.E.S.T. Standards.
-$1 million to expand the Florida Civics and Debate Initiative into every school district in the 2022-2023 school year.
-$3 million to implement the Portraits of Patriotism and Stories of Inspiration programs to provide Florida students with the materials necessary to better understand the freedoms of democracy.
-$18 million for the Dual Enrollment Scholarship Program to increase and expand student access to dual enrollment opportunities.
-$21 million for the “Florida Postsecondary Academic Library Network,” a one-stop-shop to support Florida College System and State University System students’ education goals.
-$131 million investment to continue Florida’s steadfast commitment to its four Historically Black Colleges and Universities.
