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Recruitment & Retention

Staff shortages. Grow-your-own programs. Turnover. Learn more about recruiting and retaining teachers and other school and district staff

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  • The advisers of Baldwin County High School’s chapter of Future Teachers of Alabama pose with the seniors who are committed to a career in education in April 2024. From left to right, they are: Chantelle McPherson, Diona Davis, Molly Caruthers, Jameia Brooks, Whitney Jernigan, Derriana Bishop, Vickie Locke, and Misty Byrd.
    The advisers of Baldwin County High School’s chapter of Future Teachers of Alabama pose with seniors who are committed to a career in education in April 2024. From left to right: Chantelle McPherson, Diona Davis, Molly Caruthers, Jameia Brooks, Whitney Jernigan, Derriana Bishop, Vickie Locke, and Misty Byrd.
    Courtesy of Baldwin County High School
    Recruitment & Retention Signing Ceremonies Honor Students Who Want to Be Teachers
    In a growing number of schools across the country, student-athletes aren't the only ones in the spotlight. Future teachers are, too.
    Madeline Will, April 16, 2024
    7 min read
    Facility and prospective applicants gather at William Penn School District's teachers job fair in Lansdowne, Pa., Wednesday, May 3, 2023. As schools across the country struggle to find teachers to hire, more governors are pushing for pay increases and bonuses for the beleaguered profession.
    Facility and prospective applicants gather at William Penn School District's in-person teachers job fair in Lansdowne, Pa., Wednesday, May 3, 2023.
    Matt Rourke/AP
    Recruitment & Retention Why Your Next Teacher Job Fair Probably Won't Be Virtual
    Post-pandemic, K-12 job fairs have largely pivoted to in-person events. But virtual fairs still have a place.
    Elizabeth Heubeck, April 5, 2024
    4 min read
    A teacher helps students during a coding lesson at Sutton Middle School in Atlanta on Feb. 12, 2020.
    A teacher helps students during a coding lesson at Sutton Middle School in Atlanta on Feb. 12, 2020.
    Allison Shelley/EDUimages
    Recruitment & Retention How Effective Mentors Strengthen Teacher Recruitment and Retention
    Rudy Ruiz, founder of the Edifying Teachers network, shares advice on what quality mentorship entails for teachers of color.
    Ileana Najarro, March 25, 2024
    3 min read
Recruitment & Retention: Frequently Asked Questions
What are the best ways to recruit good teachers?
The ways that teachers find school jobs has changed in recent years. But recruitment hasn’t gone all virtual. According to a 2022 EdWeek Research Center survey of job seekers, only 5 percent said they find out about K-12 jobs through virtual job fairs. Many more job seekers find jobs by looking at district websites (54 percent), word of mouth (47 percent), and education-focused job websites (42 percent).


Some districts are turning to decidedly non-digital recruitment methods, like highway billboards, flyers in grocery stores, and reaching out to parents to ask them to become substitute teachers.
What qualities do principals look for when hiring teachers?
Many principals place the most weight on how a teacher will fit in with their school’s culture. That attribute was more valued by principals than whether the teacher’s certification aligned with their school’s needs, according to a 2022 survey by RAND.


The number of years of teaching experience a teacher had ranked relatively low in principal’s desired teacher qualifications, with less than a quarter of principals saying it was in their top three.
How can schools retain teachers?
Here is some advice on retaining teachers from Principal David Arencibia of Colleyville Middle School in Texas:
· Be clear with teachers about job expectations.

· Create a positive school culture.

· Celebrate your staff.

· Listen to your staff.