10/02/2026
📚 DUVAL COUNTY VOTERS: OUR PUBLIC SCHOOLS NEED PEOPLE AND PLACES WORTH INVESTING IN
On November 3, Duval County voters will decide whether to continue the existing 1-mill funding for our public schools.
This is NOT simply about numbers on a budget.
It is about whether we are willing to invest in the PEOPLE who educate our children AND the longstanding neighborhood schools and communities our children call home.
🍎 PAY OUR EDUCATORS AND SUPPORT STAFF LIVABLE, COMPETITIVE WAGES.
Duval County needs to retain and attract the BEST AND BRIGHTEST QUALIFIED EDUCATORS—including a diverse workforce that reflects the students and communities inside our classrooms.
According to DCPS, the current 1-mill provided teacher salary supplements averaging $8,668 in 2025–26. Since its approval, teacher vacancies have declined from 6.5% to 4.4%, while teacher retention increased from 88% to 91%.
But our responsibility cannot stop with salaries.
🏫 INVEST IN OUR LONGSTANDING NEIGHBORHOOD SCHOOLS—DON'T SIMPLY CLOSE THEM.
Many of our neighborhood schools are more than buildings. They are anchors of communities, particularly in historically underserved neighborhoods.
We should be asking:
➡️ Are older neighborhood schools receiving equitable investments in maintenance, modernization and infrastructure?
➡️ Are environmental concerns—including air, water, soil, mold, aging infrastructure and other potential hazards—being properly tested, publicly reported and remediated when necessary?
➡️ Before closing or consolidating a longstanding neighborhood school, have we fully examined what it would cost to REPAIR, REMEDIATE AND REINVEST in that school?
➡️ Are communities that have experienced decades of disinvestment receiving an equitable share of capital improvements?
The 1-mill referendum and capital facilities funding are different funding streams. The 1-mill continuation primarily supports teacher, security and staff compensation and educational programs. Major repairs, renovations and construction are primarily funded through separate capital dollars.
That distinction makes accountability even MORE important.
We should follow ALL THE MONEY and demand that operating dollars support excellent educators while capital dollars are equitably invested in safe, healthy and modern neighborhood schools.
💰 LIVABLE WAGES.
🍎 RETAIN GREAT EDUCATORS.
🤝 RECRUIT DIVERSE EDUCATORS WHO REFLECT OUR STUDENTS.
🏫 REPAIR AND REINVEST IN NEIGHBORHOOD SCHOOLS.
🌱 ADDRESS ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH AND SAFETY CONCERNS.
📊 DEMAND TRANSPARENCY AND ACCOUNTABILITY BEFORE SCHOOL CLOSURES.
Our children deserve great educators AND safe, healthy schools in their own communities.
Before November 3, READ THE REFERENDUM. FOLLOW THE FUNDING. ASK QUESTIONS. AND BE AN INFORMED VOTER.
📖 Official DCPS 1-Mill Information:
https://www.duvalschools.org/o/dcps/page/vote
— Dr. Therese W. Gamble
The Ed.D. DualDoc Scholar
