There were 12,714 Black students enrolled in Escambia County’s only school district in the 2023-24 school year, a 2.2% decrease from the 13,001 Black students in the previous school year, according to the Florida Department of Education.
Data showed that Escambia County welcomed a total of 37,214 students at the time. Among them, Black students comprised 34.2% of the student body to be the second most represented ethnicity in the county. The most represented ethnicity was white, accounting for 44.4% of the students (16,535).
Gov. DeSantis has approved an education budget of over $28 billion for the 2024-25 school year. The new budget includes more than $1 billion earmarked exclusively for teacher salaries to better address the teacher shortage the state faces.
According to the National Education Association (NEA), Florida ranks 50th in the U.S. in terms of teacher salaries, only ahead of West Virginia.
| District | No. of Black Students | Total District Enrollment | % of Total Enrollment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Escambia County School District | 12,714 | 37,214 | 34.2% |
