Page 5 - Superintendent Annual Report 2023-24

activities. Across our District, we offer every sport recognized by the Florida High School Athletic Association. As a testament
to our commitment to school athletics, six high schools earned state championships with four state runner-ups. Student voice
remains essential as we concluded our second year of our Superintendent’s Student Advisory Committee. The work provided by
this committee continues to help ensure student perspectives are taken into consideration.

Recognizing that our employees have the greatest impact on creating an effective learning environment, we made a historic
investment in our teachers with a ten percent (10%) compensation package, including a seven percent (7%) recurring increase
to their base salary. This was the largest salary increase for our teachers in over twenty-five years. Employee salary increases
for all other staff groups were very competitive as well. Furthermore, we experienced significant recruitment success with more
than 1,700 teachers and additional police officers joining our team. To maintain our culture of customer service excellence, we
formalized this commitment through our Catch the WAVE campaign. Team Palm Beach members are empowered and recognized
for providing excellent customer service to families, our community, and each other. These efforts demonstrate our unwavering
dedication to attracting and retaining top talent because we know that all employees serve a vital role in creating a positive and
successful learning environment.

Establishing and maintaining community partnerships provides further opportunities for our students both inside and outside
of the classroom. Students are gaining both practical hands-on career experience as well as exposure to cultural, scientific and
historical venues within Palm Beach County. Partnership examples include Al Packer Ford in their support of an automotive
career academy, Bank of America helping to create a finance academy, Jupiter Medical Center partnering with medical sciences
academies, and Weitz Construction providing resources and expertise for a construction academy. This is just a few examples of
the great relationships we have with our corporate partners. Our community partnerships have provided the venues for engaging
our students in real-world learning and an appreciation for the arts. In FY24, we launched the "Community Experiences'' initiative
connecting students with many amazing venues across Palm Beach County. Team Palm Beach seamlessly coordinated district
wide field trips to provide every fifth grade student an interactive performance in the grand Dreyfoos Hall at the Kravis Center,
seventh grade students participated in a science and nature-focused field trip, and tenth grade students visited a social studies,
history, or civics-focused venue. With a long-term goal of one Community Experience per grade level, K-12, I thank our partners
in advance for their commitment to this initiative. Our District is also benefiting from joint partnerships with Palm Beach State
College, Florida Atlantic University, and Nova Southeastern University as we significantly expanded our “Grow Our Own” teacher
pipelines and removed potential barriers for support employees that aspire to become a teacher.

The safety and well-being of our students and staff remains the highest priority. A school police officer and certified behavioral
health professional is staffed at every school along with additional support from other health agencies, school counselors, school
psychologists, and educators trained in mental health. Through a collaborative approach, we provide targeted and expanded
professional learning opportunities for our staff, resilience education for our students, and on-site resources for students,
including therapy dog visits. Across our schools, we are implementing Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) to
support students’ behavioral, academic, social, emotional, and mental health. To further ensure school security, all staff, students,
and visitors must wear a visible ID while on campus. Every student and visitor to our high schools now pass through metal
detectors. In addition, panic buttons are worn by every employee and further security improvements include various ongoing
campus hardening measures. All stakeholders are encouraged to speak up and report safety concerns via the FortifyFL app,
where concerns are relayed directly to the school principal and School Police. We continue to evaluate and expand our strategies
to ensure a secure learning environment across all school campuses.

After a rigorous and enriching academic experience filled with extracurricular opportunities, our graduates are equipped to
pursue their college or career dreams. I look forward to building upon these successes and further investing in our schools, our
staff, and most importantly, our students. Thank you for your continued support in ensuring that the School District of Palm
Beach County is Your Best Choice!

Sincerely,

Michael J. Burke
Superintendent

EDUCATE | AFFIRM | INSPIRE 5