Florida Department of Juvenile Justice outlines centralized Florida Scholars Academy and early results

Secretary Eric Hall, head of the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice, told the Senate Criminal Justice Committee that the department launched the Florida Scholars Academy on July 1, 2023, creating a single local education agency (LEA) to provide K–12 instruction for youth in DJJ residential and detention programs.

The academy centralizes school operations that previously were delivered by local school districts and is operated under contract with Florida Virtual School (FLVS). The change, Hall said, is intended to improve academic achievement, increase workforce credentials and reduce recidivism among youth in custody.

Hall told the committee the department serves about 30,000 young people overall, with roughly 1,000 in juvenile detention and about 1,500 in residential commitment programs on any given day. He said the department now operates 37 campuses across the state and that startup funding for the first year of operations was slightly more than $12 million.

Under the new model, DJJ acts as the LEA and oversees a board chaired by the secretary with four governor-appointed members. FLVS serves as the contracted education management operator: "They hire the teachers. They have teachers in the classroom," Hall said, describing a blended instructional model that pairs FLVS online coursework with in-person teachers and paraprofessionals. Hall said that model allows individualized learning pathways, real-time progress monitoring and continuity of instruction when an in-person teacher is absent.

Hall described several operational changes that followed the shift: the department now reports an early teacher vacancy rate of about 5.5 percent and said FLVS provides an instructional "safety net" when vacancies occur. He said nearly a third of students (about 32.5 percent) are identified for exceptional student education (ESE) services or other accommodations and that the system is identifying additional students through tiered supports who were not previously recognized.

The department reported early academic monitoring results from two state progress assessments showing that 85 percent of students tested maintained or grew their overall performance between progress monitoring 1 and 2; math specifically held at about 84 percent. Hall cautioned the work is early but said those performance indicators are an initial sign of progress in the first seven months of the new model.

Hall also described postsecondary and workforce connections created under the reform. The department contracted with Tallahassee State College to operate a Florida Youth College that Hall said provides navigators and access to the state's 28 state colleges and 24 technical colleges for course articulation and transfer. Hall said the department is emphasizing three baseline workforce credentials for students: CPR/first aid, OSHA‑10 and a "ready‑to‑work" skills credential. He said about 60 students have already earned a high school diploma or GED since the new system began, and that more facilities are now configured as GED testing sites, reducing the need to transport youth off campus for testing.

Hall described career and technical education (CTE) pathways, including a new Pinellas Technical Youth Academy that places students into credentialed training such as welding, HVAC and electrical trades in partnership with local technical colleges and industry groups. He also detailed partnerships with CareerSource and associations such as the Independent Electrical Contractors and the Florida Masonry Association to develop pre‑apprenticeships and training that can articulate into apprenticeships after release.

Hall acknowledged implementation challenges, including older facilities with limited bandwidth and isolated campuses that required temporary solutions such as Starlink to provide internet access. He also said there were isolated incidents of students accessing inappropriate online content but that FLVS and DJJ tightened security protocols and worked to limit misuse.

Hall emphasized the department adopted an accountability model approved by the State Board of Education that measures achievement across English language arts, math, science and social studies, tracks learning gains and includes acceleration metrics such as dual enrollment and credential attainment. He said the accountability structure replaces older compliance‑oriented measures and enables more timely data access than the prior decentralized model.

Hall concluded by urging continued focus on implementation and continuous improvement: "Our best public safety strategy, I believe, is a high quality education for all children," he said.

The committee asked follow‑up questions about specific topics including device security, screen time monitoring and post‑release academic transition; Hall said some details — such as how many unauthorized‑immigrant youth are held in DJJ facilities — were not available at the hearing and the department would research and provide the information.

The department said these changes remain under active evaluation as students and staff complete the first full year of the new LEA model.