Commissioner of Education Pam Stewart has requested a big budget for Florida's education system -- a whopping $16.97 billion, which is $35 million more than the current year's budget.
Stewart says the additional money is needed to cover growing costs of student enrollment and help make up for $250 million of federal grants that expire this year.
If Stewart's budget request is approved, per-student funding would jump to $6,913.45, an increase of $126.77, or 1.87 percent, from last year, according to the Miami Herald.
Stewart said the proposed spending plan is a continuation budget, but pointed to several new initiatives that would take place. Among them would be$40 million to support technology in school districts, $8.9 million for math camps, $6.3 million to cover the cost of dual-enrollment courses in high schools and $582,000 to help school systems.The budget would also provide $8.4 million for principal training, and $5 million for school district professional training associated with the new Common Core State Standards, which are set to be fully implemented in Florida's schools by the 2014-2015 school year.
In addition to the K-12 system, the Department of Education oversees the Florida College System as well. State education officials are requesting $1.16 billion for colleges, which is an increase of 4.09 percent over last year.
