|
Senate president lists teacher pay as priority
Jim King says keeping good teachers is the key to attracting new businesses.
By LUCY MORGAN, Times Tallahassee Bureau Chief
© St. Petersburg Times
published February 19, 2003
TALLAHASSEE -- There may not be enough money to meet state needs this year, but Senate President Jim King vowed Tuesday to set the stage for increasing teacher pay and to "fight like crazy" against the governor's proposed university budget cuts.
Speaking to the Capital Tiger Bay Club, King said he believes strongly in the state's public schools and thinks the state will never be able to recruit new businesses if it lacks the ability to keep good schoolteachers and provide better opportunities at universities.
"I was the first in my family to graduate from high school or college," King noted. "My parents had eighth-grade educations."
King said he will do what he can "to set the stage for a quest to get schoolteachers in Florida a salary that matches the national average," about $43,000 a year. The average Florida teacher salary is about $39,000.
Gov. Jeb Bush's proposed $54-billion budget makes drastic cuts in virtually every area the state serves, but it takes its biggest bite out of state universities, with cuts totaling more than $111-million.
"Cutting off funds to universities is unconscionable and crazy, and I will fight like crazy to restore that money," King said.
Facing a friendly audience that roared in appreciation at jokes about House Speaker Johnnie Byrd, King insisted that he and Byrd will keep things civil because their wives are good friends.
"I am still of the opinion that this Legislature can meet these challenges," King said. "I hope to find a solution without short-term savings that create long-term pain."
King said negotiations over the governor's proposal to eliminate the state library are "in early stages," but the institution's valuable assets need to be protected.
Back to State news
© 2006 • All Rights Reserved • St. Petersburg Times
490 First Avenue South • St. Petersburg, FL 33701 • 727-893-8111
 |
