{"id":164321,"date":"2026-02-22T01:43:31","date_gmt":"2026-02-22T01:43:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/164321\/"},"modified":"2026-02-22T01:43:31","modified_gmt":"2026-02-22T01:43:31","slug":"florida-reaches-1-in-workforce-education","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/164321\/","title":{"rendered":"Florida Reaches #1 in Workforce Education"},"content":{"rendered":"

Published on Feb. 20, 2026<\/p>\n

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Florida has been recognized as the #1 state in the nation for workforce education, fulfilling an executive order set by Governor Ron DeSantis 5 years ahead of the 2030 goal. This milestone reflects the state’s more than $12 billion commitment to workforce education and builds on Florida’s broader record of excellence in higher education, talent attraction, and education freedom.<\/p>\n

Why it matters<\/p>\n

This achievement positions Florida as the national leader in preparing a skilled, future-ready workforce through historic investments and industry-driven programs. It reflects Governor DeSantis’s vision and strategic investment in expanding workforce pathways for students, helping to open doors to high-wage careers and strengthen the state’s long-term economic success.<\/p>\n

The details<\/p>\n

During the 2024-25 academic year, Florida achieved record-breaking Career and Technical Education (CTE) enrollment, serving more than 818,000 K-12 CTE students and nearly 512,000 postsecondary CTE students, representing a 30% increase since 2018-19. The state has also grown its Integrated Education and Training programs, apprenticeship and preapprenticeship system, and workforce development grant programs to record levels.<\/p>\n

In 2021, Governor DeSantis issued Executive Order 19-31 setting a 2030 goal for Florida to become the #1 state in the nation for workforce education.During the 2024-25 academic year, Florida achieved record-breaking CTE enrollment.Since its inception, the Workforce Development Capitalization Incentive Grant Program has allocated $240 million to bolster workforce education and training.
\n The players<\/p>\n

Ron DeSantis<\/p>\n

The Governor of Florida who issued an executive order in 2021 setting a 2030 goal for Florida to become the #1 state in the nation for workforce education, a goal which the state has now achieved 5 years early.<\/p>\n

Anastasios Kamoutsas<\/p>\n

The Commissioner of Education in Florida, who stated that Florida’s rise to the #1 state in the nation for workforce education reflects Governor DeSantis’s vision and strategic investment.<\/p>\n

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\n What they\u2019re saying<\/p>\n

\u201cFlorida has built an education system that delivers outcomes, opens doors to high-wage careers, and strengthens our state’s long-term prosperity. Workforce education is a crucial part of this effort.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 Ron DeSantis, Governor (Office of Governor Ron DeSantis)<\/p>\n

\u201cFlorida’s rise to the #1 state in the nation for workforce education is no accident. It reflects Governor DeSantis’s vision and strategic investment in expanding workforce pathways for students.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 Anastasios Kamoutsas, Commissioner of Education (Office of Governor Ron DeSantis)<\/p>\n

What\u2019s next<\/p>\n

The state will continue to build on this achievement, further expanding workforce education programs and pathways to prepare Floridians for in-demand jobs and strengthen the state’s long-term economic success.<\/p>\n

The takeaway<\/p>\n

Florida’s rise to the #1 state in the nation for workforce education demonstrates the power of strategic investment and a vision-driven approach to preparing a skilled, future-ready workforce. This milestone positions Florida as a national leader in delivering education outcomes that open doors to high-wage careers and drive long-term prosperity.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Published on Feb. 20, 2026 Got story updates? Submit your updates here. \u203a Florida has been recognized as…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":164322,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[232,234,233],"class_list":{"0":"post-164321","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-tallahassee","8":"tag-tallahassee","9":"tag-tallahassee-headlines","10":"tag-tallahassee-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/164321","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=164321"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/164321\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/164322"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=164321"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=164321"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=164321"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}