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recruitment and retention

Watch: Trends in the Teacher Workforce Webinar

March 18, 2022

By Public Impact, March 17, 2022

A recording of February’s “Trends in the Teacher Workforce” webinar, featuring a panel discussion moderated by Public Impact’s Alison Harris Welcher, is available now; click here to watch it and read EdNC’s report on the event, hosted by The Belk Foundation.

The panelists discussed strategies for recruiting and retaining teachers in North Carolina, including teacher residencies.

That’s a strategy that multiple Opportunity Culture school districts in Texas now use. Unlike traditional student-teacher roles, Opportunity Culture residencies are yearlong, paid positions on teaching teams led by multi-classroom leaders.

Equitable access to effective educators emerges as priority for North Carolina

March 16, 2022

From EdNC, March 16, 2022 by Mebane Rash

“Students in high-poverty schools are about half as likely to have access to highly effective teachers, compared to students in low-poverty schools,” said Johanna Anderson, executive director of The Belk Foundation, at a recent convening of their board of directors and education stakeholders.

This is not a new data point, but strategies are emerging to address it given vacancies in local labor markets for those working in schools and districts, and an initiative to redesign teacher licensure, support, advancement, and pay structures in North Carolina. Read More…

ECISD Superintendent discusses teacher shortages

March 11, 2022

From News West 9, March 11, 2022, by Francisco Soto

ODESSA, Texas — Shortages is something we are hearing about too often these days, and it’s not just food.

On Thursday, the Texas Education Agency announced the creation of the Teacher Vacancy Task Force. The goal is to help address staffing challenges facing Texas public schools.

NewsWest 9 spoke to Scott Muri, Superintendent for Ector County Independent School District. He said the area has been struggling with teacher shortages for several years even before the state started experiencing the same thing. Read more…

Losing our teachers: High turnover, shortages, burnout are a problem for our schools and children

February 21, 2022

From Northern Kentucky Tribune, February 21, 2022, by Jan Hillard

Every year our schools face the persistent problem of teachers deciding not to return to their schools. Over half a million teachers leave or change schools each year. Schools that serve lower income students often see turnover rates that are 50% greater than other schools. In addition, non-retention rates are 70% greater for math and science teachers.

High turnover rates present significant costs for schools. Nationally, the problem of teacher non-retention costs upwards of $8.5 billion each year. The Learning Policy Institute estimates that teacher turnover costs school districts $20-30,000 for every teacher who leaves the district. Non-retention, coupled with the cost of new recruitment, can total 150% of a departing teacher’s salary.
Read more…

The Great Resignation Hasn’t Hit School Teachers Yet. Here’s Why It Still Might

February 14, 2022

From CNET, February 14, 2022 by Antonio Ruiz Camacho

The pandemic may be the last straw for a profession mired in stagnant pay, compounding demands and endemic burnout. The situation has some asking if the field of teaching needs a reset.

It took just a simple question for Andria Nelson to grasp how different the world of education was from everything else. Nelson had quit her teaching job just months into the 2020-21 school year and taken a job as a communications specialist for a transportation company. Her innocent request—seeking someone to cover for her so she could go to the bathroom—raised some amused eyebrows around the office. Read more…

Why Would Teachers Drive Past a Higher-Paying District for a Job That Pays Less? This Texas District Knows

May 13, 2020

By Sharon Kebschull Barrett, May 13, 2020
Part 1 of 3

“I’m not in this for the money,” teachers routinely say. And yet, money and the respect of being decently paid matters—witness teacher protests across the country in recent years. So why would a teacher drive (pre-COVID-19) through a wealthier, better-paying district to head for one that pays less and serves a higher-need student population? One Texas district can answer that with two words: Opportunity Culture. Read more…

ECISD, MISD to implement Opportunity Culture®

December 12, 2019

From OA Online, December 12, 2019, by Ruth Campbell

Ector County and Midland independent school districts will implement Opportunity Culture with paid teacher residencies in partnership with the University of Texas Permian Basin. UTPB and its partner schools are the newest members in the University-School Partnerships for the Renewal of Educator Preparation (US PREP), a news release said. Ector County ISD and Midland ISD are designing their Opportunity Culture plans now for implementation in fall 2020 in 16 schools — eight in each district. Both districts have experienced large teacher shortages. ECISD has 350 openings. 

Yearlong Residencies Put Aspiring Teachers from Ector County and Midland ISDs on Teams Led By Excellent Teachers

December 9, 2019

By Public Impact, December 9, 2019

For two Texas districts—Ector County ISD and Midland ISD—teacher shortages present an immense and ongoing challenge: Combined, the districts began the school year with 500 teacher vacancies. To give new teachers a jump-start into the profession, the districts are implementing Opportunity Culture with paid teacher residencies in partnership with the University of Texas Permian Basin  (UT Permian Basin). UT Permian Basin and its partner schools are the newest members in the University-School Partnerships for the Renewal of Educator Preparation (US PREP).

Multi-School Leadership: Tools to Extend Excellent Principals’ Reach

June 12, 2018

By Sharon Kebschull Barrett, June 12, 2018

An Opportunity Culture extends the reach of excellent teaching—what about doing the same for excellent schoolwide leadership? Public Impact, which founded the national Opportunity Culture initiative, today releases a set of practical materials on Multi-School Leadership: How to extend the reach of excellent principals by having them lead a small group of schools, for more pay, funded within the budgets of their schools. Read More…

Opportunity Culture® in the News

May 14, 2018

By Sharon Kebschull Barrett, May 14, 2018

What’s new with Opportunity Culture? Recent news coverage highlights the growth and successes of Opportunity Culture, an initiative of Public Impact. Read More…