Beyond Teachers and Bus Drivers, Florida Struggles to Find Enough Substitutes

A major staffing firm, Kelly Services, is warning of an escalating shortage of substitute teachers as the new academic year approaches, not just in Florida but nationwide. Education experts believe the crisis is tied to an even larger issue: the ongoing lack of full-time teachers.

According to Rajni Shankar-Brown from Stetson University, Florida’s teacher deficit is placing greater pressure on a dwindling pool of substitute educators. 

These individuals are now being asked to temporarily fill roles that were traditionally meant for full-time professionals—while facing financial disincentives.

In Florida, substitute teachers typically earn about $14.81 per hour, amounting to roughly $30,800 annually. 

In contrast, the state’s minimum salary for certified teachers stands at $48,000. Shankar-Brown explained that in schools where both teachers and substitutes are scarce, students bear the consequences.

Related post: GED in Florida

Disruptions Impacting Vulnerable Students Most

“When there aren’t enough educators, students often end up shuffled into other classes,” Shankar-Brown said. “And sometimes that means that students end up being moved or shuffled into other classrooms, which is quite disruptive to the actual educational experience all around. 

In addition, sometimes students are being moved into an auditorium or moved into the cafeteria and told to basically educate themselves by bringing their own device.”

She emphasized that schools in economically disadvantaged areas and communities of color are disproportionately affected. 

“High-poverty schools have even more challenges, often with securing substitute teachers, and higher levels of teacher turnover,” Shankar-Brown added. 

“So, even as we think about what students are being impacted the most, by this crisis, it is often our most vulnerable students, students who have been historically and socially marginalized, who again deserve to have access to educational excellence.”

In Florida, the requirements to become a substitute teacher are minimal: applicants must be at least 18 years old, hold a high school diploma, and pass a background check.

The Florida Education Association reported that by the close of the previous academic year, more than 4,000 teaching jobs remained vacant statewide. 

Contributing factors include uncompetitive salaries, difficult work environments, fallout from the pandemic, and controversial education-related legislation.

Support staff roles such as paraprofessionals and school bus drivers are also experiencing similar staffing challenges.

To address the teacher pipeline problem, institutions like Valencia College and Daytona State College have launched tuition-free teacher preparation programs in hopes of expanding the future educator workforce.

Read next: GED Prep Classes in Florida