On Wednesday, Gov. Ron DeSantis called on the Legislature to direct $216 million from the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund (ESSER) to offer full-time public school principals and teachers $1,000 bonuses.
Last month, Congress authorized $122.7 billion for the ESSER as part of its $1.9 trillion stimulus package.
The governor’s office noted that more than 3,600 principals and almost 180,000 teachers would get the bonus across Florida.
“The past year included so much uncertainty for our state’s students, parents and educators,” said DeSantis. “In Florida, we knew how important it was for our students to return to school, and our principals and teachers answered the call. I urge the Florida Legislature to join me in awarding our great educators through this bonus program as a show of gratitude for their actions and hard work.”
“I am proud to stand with Governor DeSantis as he once again demonstrates his leadership and commitment to our educators for the incredible job, they have done during this extremely challenging school year,” said Florida Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran. “The Governor’s proposal is just one way we can show our appreciation to our hard-working teachers and principals who guided Florida through these immense challenges, and I look forward to the Legislature making it a reality.”
DeSantis successfully pushed to raise starting teacher salaries last year.
The Legislature is currently in session with plans to stay in Tallahassee throughout the month of April.
Reach Kevin Derby at kevin.derby@floridadaily.com.
