Okeechobee Times

There were 18 Alaska Native students enrolled in Hendry County school in the 2023-24 school year, a 5.3% decrease from the 19 Alaska Native students in the previous school year, according to the Florida Department of Education.

Data showed that Hendry County welcomed a total of 13,354 students during the 2023-24 school year. Among them, Alaska Native students comprised 0.1% of the student body to be the least represented ethnicity in the county.

Digital Academy of Florida was the only school in the county that enrolled Alaska Native students in the 2023-24 school year.

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.

A 2024 WalletHub study ranked Florida 49th in the nation for teacher salaries when adjusted for cost of living, making it one of the lowest in the U.S.

School name	% of Alaska Native Students Enrolment	Total Enrollment
Digital Academy of Florida	0.3%	5,880