69ý

Special Report
Education

Florida

May 05, 2005 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print
Email Copy URL

Florida allocated about $55.6 million in state funds to support public school technology for the 2004-05 school year, and state officials expect that amount to stay about the same for the upcoming school year.

While the state’s 73 school districts have considerable autonomy over how they spend the money, the Florida Department of Education recommends that districts spend it in line with the state technology plan.

To bolster technology efforts, many Florida districts spend more than twice what they get from the state on educational technology, pulling together resources from federal, state, and local governments as well as private sources.

For the 33,000-student Leon County 69ý, one of Florida’s top 20 districts in size, the state allocation for this school year was about $900,000. The district used about $230,000 on technology infrastructure and prorated the rest for schools to use in support of their own school improvement plans, according to Bill Piotrowsky, the executive director for technology and information services for the Leon County schools.

“Alternative funding sources,” Piotrowsky says, “are easily ten times the amount we receive from the state.”

The county’s half-cent sales tax has provided critical funding for technology infrastructure and instructional software. The revenue has enabled schools to replace computers every five years.

Meanwhile, Just Read! Florida is the state’s only statewide reading initiative, and it offered $32 million in grants for the 2004-05 school year to elementary and middle schools. While officials say they can’t estimate the percentage of that money that is spent on educational technology, the grants provide schools with a way to purchase computer software that supports reading instruction.

During the 2003-04 school year, the Florida Virtual School, the nation’s largest state-sponsored online school, reported having about 13,000 actual students enrolled in its courses, a number that jumped to more than 21,000 for the 2004-05 school year.

The school’s 2004-05 budget was $12.5 million.

Events

This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Artificial Intelligence Webinar
AI and Educational Leadership: Driving Innovation and Equity
Discover how to leverage AI to transform teaching, leadership, and administration. Network with experts and learn practical strategies.
Content provided by 
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
School Climate & Safety Webinar
Investing in Success: Leading a Culture of Safety and Support
Content provided by 
Assessment K-12 Essentials Forum Making Competency-Based Learning a Reality
Join this free virtual event to hear from educators and experts working to implement competency-based education.

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.

Read Next

Education Briefly Stated: October 2, 2024
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
8 min read
Education Briefly Stated: September 18, 2024
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
9 min read
Education Briefly Stated: August 28, 2024
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
9 min read
Education Briefly Stated: August 21, 2024
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
9 min read