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Photos Courtesy of Escambia County School Board
3 1. Ransom Middle School 2. N.B. Cook Elementary School of the Arts 3. Cordova Park Elementary School
Also notable this year was a pledge by Governor Scott to increase teacher salaries. Of the money allocated for education, $480 million has been set aside to go toward increasing teacher and principal salaries. Escambia and Santa Rosa counties are expected to receive about $11 million for raises, with individual districts and union representatives responsible for distributing and negotiating exactly who gets the money. Escambia County Superintendent Malcolm Thomas is hopeful that this increase in spending represents an economy that is finally able to make advances in education. He explained that 2013-14 will be the first fiscal year that there has not been a budget decrease since the recession. Nevertheless, much of his $15.7 million increase this year is already spoken for, in the form of contingencies from the state. “Of the $15.7 million increase, $6.8 million is already spoken for to pay for those promised teacher raises,” said Thomas. “Teachers in this area absolutely deserve a raise, and we still have a long way to go, so I was happy to see that happen.” Other requirements from the state include a $202,442 commitment to local teachers to reimburse them for the classroom supplies they may buy themselves, and $715,139, reserved for students who were added to the system in fiscal year 2012-13 which that year’s budget did not account for. All this spending leaves about $7.9 million to be spent by the local level. A $3.1 million increase in the Escambia County district’s retirement fund is coming online this year, as is
another teacher salary increase of $3.6 million, or 2 percent, decided upon last year. Other beneficiaries of the budget increase are the school nurse program, school safety recommendations, new rules for dual-enrollment, and the furtherance of the district’s financial stability. Although most of the increase is already spoken for, Thomas is encouraged that there was at least an increase at all this year. This allows the school board to avoid making painful cuts and worrying about their financial future; instead, they can focus on their job of enriching children’s lives and making their educational experience the best it can be. “This is a good year,” said Thomas. “We don’t have to make any cuts. There have been years when I wondered how we were going to scrape by, and this year we’re actually getting to spend some extra money. In my time here, no matter the financial difficulties, we have never once cut art, music or physical education, and that’s something I’m very proud of. Our priority is the students, and that has been reflected in our spending. We protect what is important to our students.” The public school system in the area is not the only educational beneficiary of the 2013-14 budget. The University of West Florida (UWF) also received additional funding this year, which will be put to good use with a variety of projects as the money achieves maximum benefits through the institution. One of the projects is the renovation of four older College of Business buildings, the final phase in a reimagining of the college that included the new, muchheralded Education Center that opened last year. This continuing project received $8.4 million in funding out of the budget, and Dean Ed Ranelli could not be happier about the effects this money and the renovation will have on the college he oversees. “This project is the culmination of years of waiting for June/July 2013
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