Hernando Classroom Teachers' Association

Taking Action for Our Schools, Our Community

Our students and community need strong, vibrant public schools. We know that teachers' voices can make the difference in ensuring that the resources are available to meet every student's individual needs. That's why we are shining a light on the achievements in our classrooms and the work and challenges associated with them. The narrative of Hernando's public schools belongs to all of us, and in order for the truth to be known, we need to be the ones telling our stories!

Fund Our Future, Hernando

As a statewide teacher shortage grows, our professional association is advocating for meaningful changes in state and local policies that directly impact our classrooms. Fund Our Future is an ongoing campaign to recruit and retain teachers, promote student success, and invest in our neighborhood public schools. Here in Hernando County we support local efforts to supplement state and federal funding to ensure competitive wages for educators, expand academic opportunities and increase career paths for students, and to provide the classrooms needed to support a rapidly expanding population. Together, we are proudly speaking up and speaking out for our neighborhood public schools -- and the students educated in them!

Red For Ed Wednesdays

Every Wednesday, HCTA joins teachers across the state of Florida in a visible show of support for our neighborhood public schools. We wear RED for Public Ed because we know all too well the compromises that have to be made --and the impact of those compromises on our students-- when funding for our schools is inadequate or bogged down in mandates. We wear red to call attention to the solvable problems in education. Recruiting and Retaining teachers can't be solved with flawed accountability systems or restrictions around collective bargaining for teacher salaries.

OUR Union United Will Never Be Divided!

Our Union is strong because of YOU, the members of Hernando Classroom Teachers' Association.

Together -- through collective bargaining, advocacy, and organizing -- we're making a real difference in the lives of educators in Hernando County Schools. A look back over the 2024-25 school year reveals that, as our organization celebrated its 50th Anniversary, we are a union that is not simply surviving, OUR UNION IS THRIVING!

We rallied our community around the renewal of both local school funding referendums and proved that Hernando County voters understand the value of public schools and are willing to invest in them.
Our dedicated bargaining team brought bigger, more open, more transparent bargaining to HCTA members with continuous communication, detailed surveys, super-majority site representatives included in the bargaining committee, and focus group discussions encouraging any member with an interest in key issues identified through surveys to be part of developing proposals to improve working conditions.
Our bargaining unit ratified an economic agreement that provided raises focused on experience and years in Hernando Schools to address salary compression created by state mandates.
Thanks to the hard work of our HCTA Worksite Leaders, our membership density exceeded the state's required 60% and we collected near 1,000 state-required membership authorization forms in time for our 2025 registration renewal with the Public Employees Relations Commission.
And we concluded the 2024-25 school year with an amazing turnout for the mail ballot election triggered by our 2024 renewal--sending a clear message that could LEAVE NO DOUBT: Hernando teachers want their union!

Perhaps the best part is that, by extension, we are actively improving public education for students in classrooms across Hernando County. Our efforts to improve teacher working conditions are shaping student learning conditions -- supporting recruitment and retention of quality educators, ensuring needed funding for academic programs and school safety, and maintaining a strong network of education professionals promoting and upholding best practices for successful student outcomes.

The members of HCTA are committed to building upon these recent achievements and we welcome our colleagues and community partners to be part of this very important work. Instructional staff employed in Hernando County Public Schools can become active members of our union through the online application: HCTA Membership Application

2025 HCTA STUDENT SCHOLARSHIP INFORMATION

Deadline is April 7th, 2025!

Any member with a child or children graduating high school in 2025 may submit an application.

In order for your child/children to qualify you must have been a member of HCTA from January 2024.

Scholarship documents may be downloaded here:

Applications can either be mailed to the HCTA office at the address supplied on the

Hurricane Relief Hits Hernando County

This December HCTA was excited to be able to distribute Hurricane Relief funds from the National Education Association and Florida Education Association to individuals that responded to calls to assit members signfigantly impacted by Hurricanes Helene and Milton. Additionally, members of HCTA made donations to a solidarity fund which were distriuted directly to their HCTA colleagues immediately after the storms. We are excited to be able to help our members in their time of need. Happy New Year from HCTA!

This year’s ballot will put Hernando voters’ commitment to public education to the test. Not only will we see new school board members elected, but a number of ballot initiatives and referenda will shape the operations of our schools for years to come.

In the August 20th primary, EVERY voter—regardless of party affiliation—will weigh in on school board District 4. Hernando Classroom Teachers' Association vetted all candidates for school board and has endorsed Gregg Laskoski.

The November 5th general election puts both Hernando school funding referenda in front of voters alongside the local referendum which seeks to move Hernando to an elected Superintendent and the statewide constitutional amendment to move school board races from nonpartisan to partisan contests beginning in 2026.

To say that this year’s election is of great consequence to our community would certainly be an understatement! It won’t be enough to simply ensure HCTA members are informed and participate in this election cycle; we must take steps to ensure all of Hernando’s public schools’ supporters are informed and participating!

HCTA's Government Relations Committee is seeking volunteers to participate in voter outreach and member-to-member GOTV activities. Please reach out to Adam Maternowski or Jason Daly for more information.

10/23/23 Bargaining Update

In an abbreviated bargaining session, the parties reached agreement on increasing the Board match for health insurance for the 2024 calendar year. The District will provide an additional $53.06 each month, bringing the total monthly contribution to $735.10 for employee insurance. This improvement covers increases to the "Employee Only" premiums for all plans and will ensure that more of this year's negotiated salary improvements remain in our members' pockets!

The agreement will be brought to the unit for ratification in November.

TA #8 - Article XVI - Insurance

8/31/23 Bargaining Update

With six (6) proposals exchanged over the course of a three and a half hour bargaining session, the HCTA and HCSD instructional salary negotiations culminated in a tentative agreement and a plan to move 2023-24 pay raises swiftly to ratification.

2023-24 Instructional Salary Increases

This year's agreement provides a $2,600 market adjustment for returning instructional staff who worked half a year plus one day in the 2022-23 school year. Pay for performance will add $100 for Highly Effective instructional staff and $50 for Effective instructional staff. New hires and those who worked less than half a year in the 2022-23 school year will receive a $500 bump and up to $500 more based on experience. The new starting teacher pay for Hernando Schools will be $49,500.

Instructional staff have already seen a portion of their compensation improved for the 2023-24 school year with the recalculation of referendum supplements paid through the additional millage approved by voters in 2020. Previously negotiated to assist with retention, this supplement is calculated annually based on experience in Hernando Schools.

Beyond salary improvements, HCTA and HCSD have found agreement on additional duty supplements, funding positions to support early career educators, and compensation for splitting of classes. In total, the economic adjustments represents an investment of more than $5.859 million into the instructional bargaining unit.

Ratification voting will be held at worksites across the district on September 18th, with the School Board expected to ratify on September 19th. Details of time and location for voting will be announced by HCTA Worksite Leaders. All employees of the instructional unit are eligible to vote during contract ratification.

Weingarten launches new campaign: ‘Real Solutions for Kids and Communities’

Photo of AFT President Randi Weingarten addressing TEACH 2023

The AFT has always been a solutions-driven union, and our new campaign, launched during TEACH on July 21, proves it once again with a fresh, practical approach to strengthening public education. As AFT President Randi Weingarten pointed out during her keynote speech, the $5 million, yearlong campaign, “Real Solutions for Kids and Communities,” stands up against attacks on public schools and offers real-world solutions to build up, rather than break down, our communities.