Ron DeSantis's Unusual Solution To The Teacher Shortage Has Twitter In A Tizzy
Ron DeSantis is proud of his efforts to make Florida "the state where woke goes to die," as he put it in a recent news conference (via Fox News). The Republican governor has a particular interest in taking the "wokeness" out of schools, to the delight of supporters and the disgust of opponents. Thanks to DeSantis, Florida schools were banned from mandating masks indoors during the COVID-19 pandemic and made to adhere to the so-called "Don't Say Gay" bill (via MSNBC). For his news making legislation, DeSantis made the TIME 100 List of influential people in 2021 -- and his latest initiative might just land him in this year's roundup, as well.
The new school year finds the Sunshine State scrambling to find teachers. As of June 2022, there were nearly 6,000 teaching vacancies, a 53% increase from the previous year (via WFTV). Particularly needed are educators certified in core areas such as English, general science, math, and special education (per the Florida Department of Education). The state has increased starting salaries in an attempt to attract more applicants, but the situation is still dire. DeSantis thinks he has the solution: hiring military veterans.
Calling Florida "the most veteran- and military-friendly state in the country" (via his press release), DeSantis just announced the new Military Veterans Certification Pathway, a study plan program that puts service members into the classroom to fill the teacher gap. "Florida wants you to teach in our classrooms!" he tweeted.
Many Floridians are retorting, "No, we don't."
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/ron-desantis-s-unusual-solution-to-the-teacher-shortage-has-twitter-in-a-tizzy/ar-AA10MnCj
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