JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Duval County Public Schools will have 402 fewer school-based instructional positions this upcoming school year than it did last year, according to a district spokesperson.
Class sizes are also projected to increase as the district deals with severe budget shortages.
DCPS’ tentative budget shows overall funding has dropped by $258 million for the upcoming school year, including a loss of $185 million from federal sources such as COVID-19 relief dollars.
To offset the shortfall, the budget calls for eliminating positions for 377 teachers, 9 special education teachers, and 16 school counselors, but it also adds a few dozen roles.
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Even with hundreds of teacher jobs being eliminated, there’s still a teacher shortage. The DCPS jobs website shows the district is hiring for 180 open jobs, many of which are teaching positions.
“We don’t have as many people going to college to become teachers,” said Duval Teachers United President Tammie Brooks-Evans. “It’s a tough job. It’s a hard job.”
According to a district spokesperson, some of the positions being eliminated were vacant, and more than 90% of people in jobs being eliminated were able to be reassigned.
Another plan to save money is by increasing classroom sizes.
The tentative budget shows DCPS state and local funding for the upcoming school year actually increased by $95 million, but nearly half of that money, $44 million, went toward a program that provides private school tuition through vouchers, which are available to all families, regardless of income. And $33 million went toward charter schools, leaving traditional public schools with $18 million of the increased funding.