Educators throng Florida Capitol to fight for more money
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Thousands of school workers from around the state thronged Florida’s Capitol on Monday to press Gov. Ron Desantis and the Legislature to more than double the nearly $1 billion the governor is proposing for teacher raises and bonuses.
Large crowds of demonstrators streamed into the Capitol’s main thoroughfare, some hoisting signs beseeching Florida lawmakers to “Fund our Future.” Rally organizers said as many as 10,000 demonstrators would descend on the Capitol on the eve of the official start of the 2020 legislative session.
Florida’s protest comes amid a wave of education activism across the country over the past two years in states such as Arizona, Arkansas, Indiana, Kentucky, Oklahoma and West Virginia.
The popular Republican governor has made the raises a centerpiece of his $91.4 billion budget plan, which also includes significant spending
Thousands rallied and marched from the Donald L. Tucker Civic Center to the Florida Historic Capitol to demand more money for public schools Monday in Tallahassee, Fla. School workers from around the state thronged Florida’s Capitol to press Gov. Ron Desantis and the Legislature to more than double the nearly $1 billion the governor is proposing for teacher raises and bonuses. on environmental programs.
His agenda may wrest control of key political issues
— education and climate change — long championed by Democrats.
On education, Desantis is asking lawmakers to approve
$600 million to boost the minimum salary of public school teachers to $47,500, which would catapult starting salaries to among the highest in the country. Another
$300 million would be distributed based on merit.
But the state’s largest school union said the governor’s proposal merely gives the illusion that he is addressing problems that have long plagued public schools, such as understaffing, crumbling facilities and low morale. The union said as many as 2,400 teaching jobs remain unfilled.
“The governor says he wants to raise entry-level pay. We have any veteran
Fredrick Ingram, president of the Florida Education Association, speaks to the crowd of thousands gathered in front of the Florida Historic Capitol demanding more money for public schools Monday in Tallahassee. teachers out there?” said like Bill Hudson, an engineering
Fedrick Ingram, the presiand design teacher dent of the 145,000-member at a Jacksonville-area middle
Florida Education Association, school. to raucous cheers. “We “I think it’s great that the have any custodians and bus governor is trying to move drivers, mental health service the ball,” he said. “It seems workers, counselors? there’s still no plan to address
The governor’s plan does veteran teachers and support not include you.” staff. We have teachers that
He was talking to educators have been teaching 15 years that still don’t make $47,000 a year. That’s absurd.”
Union officials said the governor’s $1 billion proposal is far short of what is needed to restore funding for traditional public schools that was lost in recent decades through budget cuts and diversion to voucher programs and charter schools.