As first week of school wraps, schools still struggle to find teachers
ST. PAUL, Minn. -- Airlines can cut routes and restaurants can cut tables, but school districts have no room for error with its students or hours even when faced with a staffing crisis.
There is good news, however, at least in St. Paul, where the public school district has hired 50 new educators in the last three weeks, and 192 since July 1.
"There is light at the end of the tunnel, and we are hopeful," Daveanna Tarpeh, Recruitment and Diversity Specialist at St. Paul Public Schools, told WCCO. "It's been a mixture of people who left and decided, 'Oh my gosh they need us, so I'll come back,' and there were individuals who thought 'Maybe I could teach' and 'I never thought this would be a possibility for me.'"
The optimism is a marked improvement since WCCO visited the district on August 22, at which point administrators reported an updated list of 333 open positions, including 122 teachers.
"We've had yoga instructors come in, individuals who teach band or music, a lot of business owners," Tarpeh explained. "We've had a lot of business owners who look at opportunities to use their creative sense and impact these kids."
As many as 80 teaching positions remain across the district, however, with the most urgent need in special education.
"It's our biggest, our most critical need because those students need so much more," Tarpeh lamented. "The skill sets, and there's a particular type of person that works in special ed and it's a little harder to find."
Across the state, advocates say there is a more prevalent feeling of relief when it comes to staffing compared to last year, especially given the renewed emphasis - and in some cases, lucrative incentives - to recruit teachers, support staff and bus drivers.
"And it goes to the custodians and the cooks and all of the folks who are supporting our schools in so many ways," Denise Specht, President of Education Minnesota, told WCCO. "We need to be making sure we have strong mentoring programs for people in the profession, strong, robust professional development, time to learn content and time to work with your colleagues, and competitive pay."
The Minnesota Department of Education offers several "tiers without fears" for licenses, enabling folks who haven't taken the traditional track to get in front of a classroom soon. SPPS also has a special site for prospective applicants.