Educator and school staff shortages have reached crisis levels in some Pennsylvania public schools, with a new Educators Rising program aimed at recruiting future educators from local high schools. It was done.
Ten schools are already participating, with students attending the Central Westmoreland Career Technology Center to improve their teaching skills.
Mount Pleasant High School's Grow Yourself program allows students to observe and assist teachers in the classroom several days a week, said Donna Lane-Odell, the center's workforce education coordinator. By doing so, he is gaining practical experience.
“Some students actually go to classrooms where they teach small groups or mini-lessons,” Layne O'Dell explained. “For example, I teach Spanish I when one student is a Spanish III student, and I have a student in AP Bio who helps with biology class, so this is kind of cool; It's definitely a unique situation.”
She noted that the first “College in High School” course will begin next year at the University of Pittsburgh's Greensburg campus. Keystone State Schools is struggling to fill more than 5,500 vacant teaching positions.
Lena Enterline, the center's vocational rehabilitation counselor, said they partner with Learning Ramp and Shippensburg University, allowing students to earn nine credits toward higher education.
“This is more of a dual enrollment type of class,” Enterline noted. “They take classes through Shippensburg University, they actually get a transcript, and then when they get those credits and decide to go to college, they can use those credits at any college that accepts them. can.”
Enterline added that even though current seniors have been in the program for less than two years, they can continue to use credits earned this year through dual enrollment opportunities.
Amanda Funk, a CTE teacher at McCaskey High School in Lancaster, said her high school is the only one of Lancaster County's high schools with an in-house career and technology program. The school has a diverse student body that helps out as juniors and seniors in elementary school and eventually extends to middle school.
“The goal is to bring them back so they can get a guaranteed interview after they graduate from college in our district and receive additional support after that,” Funk stressed. “Part of our job description is to really mentor them through their school years, and then once they come back and get a job in our district, we mentor them there as well.”
Funk added one lesson to the Educators Rising curriculum that focuses on anti-bias instruction. She observed that her students personally thanked her for classroom discussions on this topic.
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A new report from the National Education Association says sluggish salary growth is reducing the purchasing power of teachers in Ohio and across the country by 5%.
Last year, the state Legislature approved a 17% increase in teachers' base annual salaries from $30,000 to $35,000 and agreed to fund the second phase of the state's Fair Schools Funding Plan.
Ohio Education Association President Scott DiMauro said the changes are a sign of hope, but argued that Ohio needs to do more to alleviate teacher shortages and keep educators in the field. He stressed that state investment in teacher salaries should be a priority.
“I think there is a disproportionate reliance on local income,” DiMauro explained. “That would be money coming from local taxes instead of state funding for public schools.”
The report found that 1,300 school districts nationwide paid starting salaries of $40,000 or more for teachers last year, and nearly 500 districts now pay starting teachers at least $60,000 or more annually. That's what it means.
DiMauro added that collective bargaining states continue to rank among the best in the nation when it comes to educator pay. Starting salaries for teachers in states with bargaining laws are about $1,600 higher than in states without bargaining laws, and maximum salaries are more than $1,200 higher.
“It's not a coincidence,” DiMauro insisted. “Average salaries in states that engage in collective bargaining are 26% higher than in states that do not engage in collective bargaining.”
According to the nonprofit Economic Policy Institute, teachers' salaries have declined significantly compared to those of other college-educated workers. Teachers will earn, on average, about 26% less than similarly educated professionals in 2022, the lowest level since 1960.
Disclosure: The Ohio Education Association contributes to our foundation for education reporting. If you would like to help support news in the public interest, click here.
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As special state funding for mental health staff in Michigan's public schools ends this year during the pandemic, schools are scrambling to find ways to keep professionals in their buildings.
The $240 million grant was launched in 2021 as students grappled with challenges, from virtual learning and sports cancellations to the loss of loved ones due to the coronavirus. The district is currently exploring alternatives.
Diane Gorzinski, assistant superintendent of business, health and library services for the Michigan Department of Education, said the options include the School Mental Health Apprenticeship, which encourages people to choose a career in mental health by giving them financial support. program.
“The reason we pay people who need to do supervised internships to get into this field is to give them a small wage so they can actually do the internships.” Gorzinski explained.
He noted that school districts can also apply for Medicaid matching funds for all eligible jobs and use those funds to keep mental health personnel in schools.
Gorzinski emphasized that the goal is to create a comprehensive school mental health system.
“We don't just want to put specialists in schools, we want to put specialists in schools where schools need them, because there are different types of specialists,” Gorzinski said. “It could be a psychologist, it could be a counselor, it could be a social worker, it could be a school nurse.”
She emphasized that her department is also working with school districts on how to best utilize mental health staff.
Critics may counter that it is the responsibility of parents to take care of their children's mental health needs. But Gorzinski countered that it is often in schools that these problems are pointed out and acknowledged.
“The school works with the family to support this child so that he or she can be the best learner he or she can be,” Gorzinski asserted.
Gorzinski also added to the table a school mental health funding program that proposes a per-pupil allocation to each school district.
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School districts around Washington and others may have celebrated School Lunch Hero Day Friday in honor of cafeteria workers, but food workers are looking for more than just a pat on the back. They want wages that are in line with inflation.
There are approximately 6,500 school food workers in Washington state, who earn an average full-time annual salary of just over $54,000.
Paul Buse-Bing is the kitchen manager at Pine Lake Middle School in Sammamish.
“Every position in the school district is important and everyone works hard, but students who don't eat properly are unable to eat nutritious meals and participate to their fullest in academics. So what we do is very important,” he said.
This year, lawmakers rejected Superintendent Chris Reykdal's request for a $7-an-hour raise for paraeducators. He said in his re-election campaign that he would seek a broader increase in classified workers next year.
Busevin said relatively low wages are making it difficult to find enough staff while the cost of living is rising.
“We often go through the school year understaffed, with no one or anyone else to fill in when people get sick or go on vacation, and a lot of it has to do with wages. Especially because of inflation,'' he added.
Many school districts say they are underfunded and need more state resources to do so.
Recruit and retain qualified workers.
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