In any other year, Polk County teachers would be thrilled with the hard-fought contract, likely to be approved by the school board on March 25, that would give them 4.5% to 7% raises.
The contract, which Polk Education Association members are voting on this week, would be the largest single salary increase in the district’s history. It amounts to $1,200 to $3,900 per teacher, depending on experience.
But this is not an ordinary year.
On Nov. 5, Hillsborough County voters overwhelmingly approved a property tax millage referendum that will give Hillsborough teachers — who already make $6,414 more on average than their colleagues in Polk — across-the-board raises of $6,000.
That means that, despite the historic new contract, the salary gap between Polk and Hillsborough counties is about to grow wider.
No mass exodus… yet
Many Polk teachers talk anecdotally of colleagues who have switched districts for better pay. However, Superintendent Fred Heid said there is no evidence at this point of higher-than-usual resignations.
As of February, the number of teachers leaving the district has been comparable to previous years.
District officials noted that although salaries are lower in Polk, the school district covers 100% of employee-only health insurance. The cost of living is not as high in Polk County, and commuting into Hillsborough can be time-consuming.
However, teachers’ union president Stephanie Yocum isn’t sure. “Once we start seeing resignation letters coming in May, I think that’s when we’ll start seeing some hard numbers — especially people who live in Lakeland or Mulberry and can hop County Line Road pretty quickly.”
She added that the departure numbers don’t account for the high number of classes being taught by long-term substitutes, who do not have to be certified or even have bachelor’s degrees.
10% of Polk’s teachers are long-term substitutes
Polk County spokesman Kyle Kennedy confirmed that there are currently about 680 long-term substitutes in the district, which had 6,659 teachers last year and has a little more than 6,800 teachers this year.
Some of those substitutes are working toward certification and will likely be hired permanently.
“But more than half of the subs have no intention of becoming a teacher. And that’s alarming,” Yocum said.
Yocum added that although schools must notify parents if one of their child’s teachers is not fully certified in the subject they’re teaching, there is no reporting requirement for substitutes.
“As a parent, it’s hard to discern whether your kid has a sub or not, unless your kid tells you or you happen to find out. Because when you look at the parent portal, their name is listed like any other teacher’s name,” she said.
Heading off a ‘staffing crisis’
Nearby counties are not the only looming concern. Yocum said many people are leaving the profession because of working conditions as well as pay, and very few college students are choosing to major in education.
That makes retaining current teachers even more important.
Yocum said if the school board agrees to put a millage referendum on the ballot in 2026, Polk County might be able to hang on to most of its teachers for another year.
The contract the PEA and the district have tentatively approved is retroactive to the beginning of the current school year. If it is ratified on March 25, Polk teachers are expected to get a lump sum payout on June 30.
“You have people that love what they do. They love their community. And I think they can hold on, especially if they know that a millage referendum is in sight,” she said.
But she said it’s urgent to give teachers hope that things will improve.
Property tax referendum: The union urged school board members to put a millage referendum on the 2024 ballot, but Yocum said the political will wasn’t there at that time.
However, many board members have signaled recently that they are open to doing it in 2026.
“We have to get this millage on the ballot, and we have to message to our communities that this is important for public schools. Because these next two years are going to determine the quality of education we can provide in Polk County,” Yocum said.
She noted that millage referendums for school funding appeared on ballots in 26 Florida counties last year. Voters approved all but one.
Cindy Glover is a reporter for LkldNow, a nonprofit newsroom providing independent local news for Lakeland. Read at LkldNow.com.
