BARTOW, Fla. — The Florida Education Association (FEA) is calling it a “retention crisis at a breaking point,” after reviewing the number of teacher and instructional staff vacancies at schools across the state.
FEA reviewed county-by-county vacancy data as of January, and with 412 vacancies, it lists Polk County schools as the number one district with the most vacancies in the entire state.
“That’s almost 10% of your classrooms that are not having a certified, qualified educator in front of children. So that’s a problem and it’s been a consistent problem, and it’s not just a consistent problem in Polk. This is happening statewide,” said Stephanie Yocum, President of the Polk Education Association…