Florida - Wednesday December 13, 2023: Governor DeSantis has awarded $5 million through the 'Pathways to Career Opportunities Grow Your Own Teacher Grant' to expand opportunities for teacher apprenticeships in Florida.
The aim of the program is to strengthen the state’s teacher pipeline by creating a no-cost apprenticeship pathway to the teaching profession. It is expected that the program will help more than 200 teachers become credentialed, every year.
“Florida is proud to offer a hands-on teacher apprenticeship program that prioritizes classroom experience over university-based learning,” said Governor DeSantis. “We will continue to support our teachers and make sure we have high-quality educators at every school in the state.”
“This funding will allow more aspiring educators to enter into a teaching career while alleviating teacher shortages," said Commissioner of Education Manny Diaz, Jr.
Earlier this year, Governor DeSantis signed HB 1035 into law which established the Teacher Apprenticeship Program. The Department of Education worked in partnership with the University of Florida to establish the framework for the program before the legislation passed so that new teachers could start entering the profession as quickly as possible.
The institutions receiving funding through the program in 2023-24 are:
- Broward College
- Daytona State College
- Florida A&M University
- Florida Gateway College
- Florida SouthWestern State College
- Miami Dade College
- Rollins College
- Seminole State College
- Saint Leo University
- University of Florida
For more information about the Florida Pathways to Career Opportunities Grant Grow Your Own Program visit www.fldoe.org/pathwaysgrant.