The Need

Our students deserve:

• To arrive at school on time, ready to learn.
• A highly qualified, consistent teacher in every classroom, every day.
• A safe, positive, and supportive learning environment where they can thrive academically, socially, and emotionally.
• Access to the programs, services, and opportunities that help them reach their full potential.

To provide these essential supports, we must be able to recruit and retain outstanding employees across our district. That means keeping our best teachers in classrooms, our strongest principals and assistant principals leading schools, and dedicated bus drivers, student nutrition employees, custodians, security officers, paraprofessionals, and support staff serving students every day.

Unfortunately, Leon County Schools faces a significant challenge: we have substantially less funding than many comparable school districts, limiting our ability to offer competitive salaries and benefits. As neighboring districts are able to provide higher compensation, we struggle to retain experienced employees and attract new talent.

The result is clear: more vacancies, more reliance on substitute teachers, and critical positions that remain unfilled. These staffing shortages directly affect students by disrupting instruction, reducing services, creating transportation delays, and limiting opportunities for student success.

Investing in our workforce is an investment in our students. If we want to provide the high-quality education and support our children deserve, we must be able to attract, retain, and support the exceptional professionals who make that possible.

Staffing Shortages Are Creating Significant Barriers to Student Success

The growing number of staff vacancies across our district is having a direct and measurable impact on students' daily learning experiences and overall well-being.

• More than 20 teacher vacancies* mean that many students do not have access to a highly qualified teacher in their classroom, limiting the quality and consistency of instruction they receive.

• More than 60 non-instructional and support staff vacancies* are affecting critical services and operations, including Instructional Paraprofessionals, Technology Coordinators, School Accountants, Extended Day programs, HVAC Technicians, Painters, Plumbers, Roofers, Carpenters, Locksmiths, Physical Therapists, Secretaries, Cafeteria Workers, and Custodians. These shortages impact both the learning environment and the day-to-day functioning of our schools.

• More than 20 coaching vacancies* are reducing opportunities for students to participate in athletics and extracurricular activities. These programs play a vital role in academic achievement, cognitive development, teamwork, leadership, social growth, and long-term physical and mental health.

• Bus driver vacancies* are causing transportation delays, resulting in students arriving late to school and missing valuable instructional time.

• Several school administrators, the leaders responsible for setting expectations, supporting staff, and shaping school culture, have left for other districts, creating additional challenges for school stability and continuity.

These staffing shortages are not just operational concerns. They directly affect the educational opportunities, support services, and experiences our students receive every day.

* As of September 18, 2026, more than 30 days into the school year.

School districts across the state have faced this same challenge. To address this, more than 30 Florida school districts currently benefit from voter-approved local school tax referendums that provide additional funding for teacher salaries, school safety, student services, and staff recruitment and retention. Many Florida school districts have adopted voter-approved local funding measures to supplement state education funding and support teacher and staff recruitment, retention, school safety, and student services

Among the large school districts in North Florida, Leon County Schools is one of the few that does not currently benefit from a voter-approved operating millage referendum, while neighboring districts such as Duval, Clay, and St. Johns have active local funding measures in place. 

For more than a decade, the State Legislature has allowed school districts to bring referendums to voters to provide more revenue for their local schools. Multiple North Florida and Panhandle school districts already have voter-approved operating millage referendums.

Voters in local districts surrounding us have already approved a millage referendum including:

• Escambia County (Pensacola)
• Franklin County (Apalachicola area)
• Gulf County (Port St. Joe area)
• Jackson County (Marianna) 
• Taylor County (Perry)
• Walton County (DeFuniak Springs / South Walton)

As well as others 

• Alachua (Gainesville)
• Clay (Orange Park)
• Duval (Jacksonville)
• Franklin (Appalachicola/St. George Island)
• St. Johns (St. Augustine)
• Taylor (Perry)
• Walton (Santa Rosa/Defuniak Springs)

A millage would support all Leon County School students, including Charter schools, by addressing the large number of teacher and support staff vacancies and expanding academic programs. Leon County would be joining a funding approach already used successfully by neighboring and peer districts across North Florida.

Approximately 63% of Florida public school students attend districts with a voter-approved additional operating millage referendum.

If voters approve the millage on November 3rd, it will allow us to compete on behalf of our students.

• More competitive Salaries: Teachers would receive a salary supplement of $6,000 more per year, with $3,000 more for support staff such as bus drivers and student nutrition workers, and $6,000 more for administrators such as principals and assistant principals.

• Expansions to academic programs, including extended learning and the arts, college and career readiness, and athletics and P.E.

• Security upgrades: This will help support and improve our school's security.

Homeowners can utilize a simple formula to figure out the cost for their specific home. Property owners would pay $1 for every $1,000 in taxable value (not the home's actual market value). According to the Leon County Property Appraiser’s Office, the value of the average home in Leon County is ~$300,000. When you take out the homestead exemption ($25,000), that leaves $275,000 in taxable value. The cost to a typical homeowner in Leon would be $275 a year, or about 75 cents a day.

Leon County Property Appraiser Akin Akinyemi and his team have a great tool for homeowners. Use this search tool to see how much your investment in our students will be if the millage referendum passes in November.  Simply look up your property and find the taxable amount in the far-right column under the School – Local Board and divide by 1000.

Ex: $117,754 Taxable = $117.75 tax/year

If the millage passes in November, Leon County Schools would receive an estimated $24-26 million to support students each year --$20.4 million to district schools and $3.6 million to charter schools (based on student enrollment, per state statute). Allowing the district to:

• Retain and recruit high-quality teachers and support staff so that every child has a consistent teacher in their classroom.

• Expand learning programs and offer field trips for all our students, at no cost to them.

• Full-day voluntary pre-K (VPK) for Leon County Public Schools students so they can be prepared and ready for Kindergarten.