On Monday, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis committed to approving a record teacher salary funding increase of $1.25 billion in the budget for Fiscal Year 2024-2025. Since 2019, when DeSantis took office, his state has invested over $4 billion in teacher pay increases and has raised starting teacher pay by almost $10,000.
“Florida’s education system is number one in the nation, and we want to make sure good educators are attracted to Florida with attractive compensation,” said DeSantis. “I am proud to have invested more than $4 billion for teacher pay increases since the beginning of my time in office, and I will continue to push for increased funding for Florida’s teachers.”
“I want to thank Governor DeSantis for his steadfast commitment and unwavering dedication to Florida’s education system throughout the years,” said Florida Department of Education Commissioner Manny Diaz, Jr. “Florida continues to attract some of the best educators in the country and it is a testament to the work that Governor DeSantis has done to support education and raise teacher pay. Florida is the education state and with investments like this, we will continue to lead the nation for years to come.”
According to a press release from DeSantis’ office, “For the 2023–2024 school year, Florida’s average starting teacher pay is over $48,000, and the average teacher salary exceeds $54,000.”
“Before Governor DeSantis took office, there was no dedicated, recurring funding for teacher pay increases. In 2020, the Teacher Salary Increase Allocation was established in the budget and has risen from $500,000,000 to more than $1.25 billion approved today for the upcoming year. Thanks to the work of Governor DeSantis and the Florida Legislature, Florida has the highest average starting teacher salary in the southeast United States,” the press release added.
