It all started with one word: glue.
27 years ago, John Hoback heard someone say that the performing arts center was the glue that held communities together. But looking around his community, John felt differently. Certainly, performing arts are worth investing in and bring people together, but to him, the real glue in a community were the public schools- the true heart and souls of our neighborhoods.
In 2002, when Farnell Middle School was set to open, John was there- this time, as a language arts educator with Title I experience under his belt.
“In those days, there was a line to teach,” John told us.
“I interviewed for a year to teach at a Title One school and I started a week before they opened. It was a competitive field- people wanted to become educators.”
Ten years ago, Farnell Middle was listed as the best school in Hillsborough and one of the top four in the state. But lately, the school has been experiencing a problem that is not unique to it: less people want to become educators in Florida.
“27 years ago, you could do all the right things,” John explained. “You could become a teacher, get a master’s degree and become a subject area leader (which I did), become nationally board certified (which I did) and know that after six or seven years, you could do your job well and be paid for it. You could know that you would be OK and be able to provide for your family and live a good life. That’s not the case today- someone can’t do that now. All those years ago you knew that if you put in the years, you could double your income by the time you ended your career. Today, veteran teachers get to the end of their career, and they feel stuck, and newer teachers no longer want to stay in a career that undervalues them.”
When the start of the recent school year came around, there weren’t enough qualified teachers for every classroom. At the end of the day, the students are the ones who feel the burden of a teacher and staff shortage the most.
“The effects on students are compounding,” said John. “You can see it in students who feel less connected to their classes, and you can see it in their test scores. Parents want schools to succeed but in order for them to succeed, they need support. And they need it from Tallahassee.”
In order to support public education, there have to be funds for it. Recent budget proposals don’t do nearly enough to invest in public education or its educators, and a recent report by the National Education Association shows that Florida’s teachers rank #50 in the nation in average teacher salary. Reading and Math NAEP scores and SAT scores continue their downward trend.
When support does come from Tallahassee, it’s not always the magic fix its made out to be.
In 2020, Teacher Salary Allocation — or TSA — was passed by the Florida Legislature. The law was purportedly established to recruit and retain newly hired teachers by providing $500 million for local school districts to increase the starting salary of new teachers to $47,500. But the distribution of money caused veteran teachers like John to feel the impact of salary compression- when new hires start off at a significantly higher pay that is too close to veteran employees.
“We need people fighting hard to become teachers- but teachers can’t be the glue that holds communities together if they can’t afford to be a part of those communities,” says John. “If they can no longer afford to purchase homes or raise families or provide for their families, young teachers leave- either the city or the profession all together.”
The system is failing public schools, and without a sustainable plan in place, Florida won’t be able to compete. And as John says, if the plan for educators is “figure it out” then there really is no plan. For John, his union gave him a voice to fight, and that voice has helped other educators realize that when Tallahassee doesn’t show up for educators, we have to show up for each other.
“My father was with the Communications Workers of America and my mother was an elementary school teacher and a union member- I signed up to be part of my union on the first day of work 27 years ago. People tell me lots of reasons why they can’t join their union, and I just remind them that in the long run, the reason teachers in Hillsborough will be getting a $6,000 increase to their salaries isn’t because of Tallahassee- it’s because of our union and our community that came together to fight. Our wins have been because we organized in our union.”
Recently, John teamed up with a fellow union member and math teacher to hold tax roll presentations and helped educate educators on how much their house was worth, opening up conversations on property taxes and the investments in public education that their community has made.
“Everyone wants to put their best foot forward in providing for their families- everyone wants that chance. And right now, people are not choosing education as a pathway toward this. And our students are struggling because of it.”
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