As the first waves of the teacher shortage hit, districts are finding innovative ways to get “first dibs” on new hires and fill the void.
San Francisco Unified School District has a “Grow Your Own Teacher” program. The district’s Paraprofessional Teacher Training Program assists classroom aides with the costs of teacher preparation and supports them as they progress toward a credential. The program is offered to those who will teach in high-need areas such as math, science and special education. Participants must agree to teach in the district for at least three years.
For many years, the New Haven Unified School District has expedited its hiring timeline so that it can offer contracts to teacher applicants before other school districts. It’s not unusual for new teachers to be offered contracts in March of the preceding year — before they even graduate.
New Haven has also interviewed teacher candidates from out of state via video conferencing. One such recruit, Jennifer Bandaru, went to a Kinko’s in a Minnesota town for an interview a few years ago, where she was offered a job on the spot.
“There was a slight time delay of seven seconds,” recalls Bandaru, a member of the New Haven Teachers Association. “When I said something as an icebreaker — a joke — there was no response at first. But then people laughed and I felt okay.”
East Side Teachers Association members associated with the district’s induction program often visit nearby colleges to recruit the best and the brightest students before graduation — and hire students that reflect the district’s diverse student population.
“We go to the professors in the pre-service programs, visit the classrooms and hand out literature,” says Paul Kilkenny, a mentor in the program. “We know who the superstars are.”
The Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) offers new teacher hires fully credentialed in math, science and special education a $5,000 recruitment incentive paid during their first year of employment. Recruits must have training to teach English language learners and be willing to teach at a Program Improvement school in decile 1, 2 or 3.
The same amount goes to veteran teachers willing to transfer to schools of greatest need. According to Deborah Ignagni, administrator of certificated employment operations, “a good number of teachers have requested those types of transfers.”
The incentive money is a step in the right direction, but more needs to be done, says United Teachers Los Angeles President A.J. Duffy. “LAUSD may be doing a good job of attracting teachers, but we’re concerned that the district is not doing such a great job of encouraging them to stay. Pay becomes less competitive with neighboring school districts as teachers gain experience.”
LAUSD recruits students attending colleges in other inner-city areas throughout the country, “because people who work in a large urban environment are not afraid to go to another one,” says Ignagi. Last year, LAUSD hired 125 teachers from foreign countries to work mostly in secondary schools and in special education.
They aren’t the only ones recruiting on foreign soil: Barstow, Silver Valley and Adelanto in the High Desert area have hired teachers from Spain and the Philippines.
Some communities, such as Pasadena, are bringing retirees back to the classroom as substitute teachers.
In June, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger announced his goal of having a public-private partnership to lure retirees from the fields of math, science and technology into the teaching profession. With the budget crisis, however, it remains to be seen whether the $12 million program to cover costs of tuition and other training expenses will be funded.
