ORLANDO, Fla. — Summer’s over, school is in session and teachers are back in class, for the most part.
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However, every local district is facing a teacher shortage in one way or another, and it’s a problem that isn’t going away soon.
According to a report by Florida TaxWatch, the Florida Department of Education in February projected a need to fill about 9,000 teacher vacancies before the start of the upcoming school year.
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By June, the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity found 5,837 open teaching positions online, up 53% from June of 2021.
The report found that the teacher shortage was so bad, that about 10% of teachers active during the 2021-2022 school year weren’t properly certified to teach in their field.
The report says Florida’s average annual teaching salary is down about 13% since the 2009-2010 school year.
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The report also goes into detail about what the state is doing to try to reverse course, like increasing pay for teachers.
About $800 million was allocated to raise Florida’s minimum teacher pay and to boost the salary of veteran teachers, meaning the average starting salary will be at least $47,000, and Florida will have the ninth-highest average starting salary in the nation.
READ: Incoming OCPS superintendent shares priorities, challenges for district
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