Written by Erin Tobin
Every administrator spends time recruiting and/or retaining their staff–it’s an essential part of the job as a school or system leader, and it’s often one on which a school’s success hinges. With so much to do and so many hats that administrators and HR professionals have to wear, it’s often difficult to think outside the box to accomplish hiring goals. However, the times they are a-changin’, and with changing times comes the need to reexamine things we previously held true. Are any of these misconceptions holding you back from innovating to recruit and retain the best possible talent?
- Third Quarter is Prime Hiring Time. Because third quarter is when many schools offer contracts and ask for resignation letters, it intuitively makes sense for that to also be prime hiring season. However, by this time, many of the most compelling, dynamic, driven educators are already off the market. Schools are now hiring as early as November, and while it’s not impossible to find great educators in the spring, that’s no longer when you’ll find the biggest pool of qualified candidates for your school or district.
- One = One. Often administrators think that one teacher loss is just that–one teacher loss. In actuality, however, the domino effects of that loss are much farther reaching. Midyear resignations can place a tremendous burden on other teachers for a variety of reasons. Remaining teachers can be asked to pick up additional duty times, cover classes, help substitutes, and more. They also may experience an emotional or copy-cat reaction to the resignation, even if the resigning staff member wasn’t a positive influence on the team. Because of these things, administrators can lose additional staff members midyear or in the upcoming year.
- Replacing a Teacher Won’t Break the Bank. According to the Learning Policy Institute, the cost of teacher turnover in urban districts can be more than $20,000 for each new hire, including, “expenses related to separation, recruitment, hiring, and training.” Hiring teachers who are not a strong fit for your school or district and therefore leave within a year or two can run up your total replacement cost quickly–without your school or students making much growth for the additional financial spending.
OneTeacher and Upbeat via OneTeacher can help you recruit, hire, and retain amazing talent using innovative proprietary systems so that you can meet your staffing goals year after year. Contact us today to learn more!
Erin Tobin is the Founder & CEO of OneTeacher and a former middle school teacher, teacher coach, and leader of new teacher development. She also served as a leader of a selective teacher preparation program at which she led the hiring of expert teachers and educational leaders to train and develop novice educators. Erin now leads OneTeacher’s work to create partnerships the make that “right match” between teachers and partner schools, supporting excellent outcomes for students, schools and communities.
