Commissioner of Education Manny Diaz, Jr., announced on Tuesday the awarding of $5 million through the Pathways to Career Opportunities Grow Your Own Teacher Grant to expand Florida’s teacher apprenticeship program and strengthen the teacher pipeline.
Seven institutions throughout the state will receive these funds to enhance or create no-cost teacher apprenticeship programs.
The Broward and Miami-Dade schools, along with Florida A&M University and Seminole State College, will receive an additional $4,348,921 in funding to enhance their 2023-2024 allocations and further advance their teacher apprenticeship programs.
Additionally, three new institutions will be awarded grants totaling $1,095,373: St. Petersburg College, Polk State College, and Tallahassee State College.
In 2023, Governor DeSantis established the Teacher Apprenticeship Program through HB 1035, which approved $1.05 billion for teacher pay.
The pathways program aims to attract applicants from high schools, charter centers, charter technical career centers, Florida College System institutions, and other authorized entities to sponsor apprenticeship or pre-apprenticeship programs.
In December, DeSantis allocated $5 million to expand opportunities for teacher apprenticeships in Florida, with the goal of credentialing more than 200 teachers per year to enter the teaching profession.
