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EDUCATE | AFFIRM | INSPIRE 179In early December, Superintendent Burke and his leadership team provided the Deputy Secretary of Labor, Mr. Keith Sonderling, with tours of several schools, highlighting the impressive, highly engaging career and technical education (CTE) courses at Santaluces Community HS, West Boynton MS, and Historic Carver Technical Education Center. The United States Department of Labor will assume funding and policy responsibility for CTE, Perkins Grants, Title I-IV funding, and related programs. Recently, Mr. Sonderling, a former Boca Raton resident, was named Secretary of the United States Department of Labor.Teachers and StaffAfter the 2025 Classroom Teacher Salary Allocation (TSA) resulted in only a 0.6% raise for Palm Beach County teachers, the superintendent and the Board advocated for a more substantial boost to address cost-of-living increases. The Florida Legislature subsequently doubled the prior year%u2019s statewide allocation, raising the TSA to $201 million. On May 6, 2026, the School Board approved a 3.5% salary increase agreement with the Palm Beach County Classroom Teachers Association (CTA), which was ratified two weeks later. Additionally, under HB561, the Florida Department of Education may issue temporary teaching certificates to individuals whose prior certificates have expired. These certificates can be reinstated with the prior subject-area coverage and endorsements in effect at the time of expiration, without the individual having to retake the subject-area exams.FinanceFollowing a special legislative session in June 2026, the Florida Legislature passed House Joint Resolution (HJR) 1-F, placing the %u201cSave Our Homes from Excessive Property Taxes%u201d amendment, a major property tax relief measure, on the November 2026 ballot. If approved by 60% of voters, the amendment will significantly increase the homestead exemption for non-school property tax levies to $250,000 by 2028 and halve the assessment growth cap for non-homestead properties from 10% to 5%. Crucially, these cuts exclude school district millage rates, preserving the foundational $25,000 school homestead exemption. This carve-out was designed to protect the local revenue streams that support Florida%u2019s public school operating budgets, addressing concerns raised by education advocates statewide about long-term resource stability for local classrooms. Curriculum/AccountabilityDuring this legislative session, the School Board supported and advocated for HB 453, which allows participation in marching band and Special Olympics training to satisfy Physical Education requirements. Sponsored and championed by Representative Peggy Gossett-Seidman and Senator Lori Berman, the bill passed unanimously. Another bill that passed, HB 538, enables students to participate in extracurricular activities at schools other than their school of enrollment. Regarding funding, the statewide mental health allocation remained at $180 million, and the District continues to provide supplemental support through its own referendum-funded programs, such as co-located mental health providers at schools. Furthermore, the Academic Acceleration Options Supplement maintained FY25 funding levels, and $200,000 was allocated for patriotic classroom displays per SB 182.PrekindergartenIn response to requests from community partners, including the Economic Council of Palm Beach County, the District remained committed to exploring funding opportunities and continued to advocate for full funding of high-quality, full-day Voluntary Pre-kindergarten programs. Although there is broad consensus on the importance of this initiative, the state budget for the current legislative session did not include the necessary allocations to support this expansion.