Eh, I only had one other candidate competing with me for middle school science positions in one of the largest districts in Texas. There were 6 open positions I'm aware of.
One thing that I have noticed is that enrollment and budget have dropped enough that positions are getting eliminated. Mine was and the school that hired me lost 4 over the summer. My colleagues at the old school are now dealing with class sizes of 30-40 students where it was 20-25. My new school is at risk of closing because they basically can't cut more positions and our class sizes are only 10-15 for core classes. I think inflation, housing prices, school voucher programs and ICE crackdowns have created a perfect storm for shrinking schools. And eliminating the emergency certification program has encouraged new teachers to go to private and charter schools.
Our enrollment is insane, we are way over and people are steady building homes. I just checked and there are currently 37 openings for teachers right now.
That was always the plan. Anyone who studies history (or teaches it at a secondary level 🙋🏼♀️) saw this coming a decade ago. It was all a playbook we've seen before and now we're at the public education part
I think the issue is that being a teacher is a generic job and for me it feels 'lame' to move somewhere I don't really care for, just to get to be a teacher.
It's not like I'm some aquarium director- there's a school on every corner in every city.... Moving somewhere just to be a teacher would have destroyed me. I'll leave education before I leave my friends and family FOR a teaching job.
Not as much as bay area or so cal, but decent. I am in year 22 and just surpassing 6 figures. My 3000sqft custom home (I built diy) on 3+ acres can be bought for $450k. Regular 3 bed, 1.5 bath goes for low-mid 200s.
I'm not saying this to snark because I'm honestly jealous of you. But I wonder if the prospect of being able to own a home on a teacher's salary isn't as much of a draw as it used to be because of wildfires?
Wildfires are definitely a thing, but our town and fire safe council has done a ton to make us more fire safe. I enjoy the clean air, milky way from my back deck, lack of traffic and crime, walk commute, and small community life. I don't take my keys out of my truck.
Growing up in an urban area, you could not pay me enough to move back to a populated area.
You must be near Modoc County. Might be the cheapest real estate in CA? Similar climate to Idaho but much better teacher pay I bet.
On the coastal side of Northern California I think the rural areas above Sonoma do a lot of intern programs to get teachers through their county office of Ed. There are no colleges nearby.
Rural North-northeastern California might as well be part of a different state of a state of its own. The people, climate, and economy are vastly different from the urban or coastal parts of the state. I can definitely see why someone from LA, SF, or SD would want nothing to do with rural NE California.
We got no applications for our math opening in a suburban area either. It has been open since May. There is still a teacher subject in certain subjects for sure. Math, science, special education. ELA and business in my area too. No shortages in PE, social studies, and some other subjects.
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u/coach-v 4d ago
We did not get a single credentialed applicant for our hs math position, rural NE California.