“We are at risk of losing many of these highly qualified educators if we do not take a careful look at the factors contributing to burnout in the profession.”— Richard Woods, state school superintendent (June 2022).
By Jack Bernard
PEACHTREE CITY, Ga. | With 3,112 openings, Georgia has one of the highest numbers of teacher vacancies in the nation. Of the 37 states reporting, only Florida has more teacher vacancies. Georgia is currently in a pitched battle for teachers with surrounding states, which also have vacancies.
Are Georgia’s teachers happy with their profession? A recent report suggests that they are not.
Gwinnett is Georgia’s largest public school district. As reported recently, the public schools in Gwinnett County are also experiencing retention issues.
At a recent school board meeting, the Board heard from a consultant (the Alma Advisory Group) that Gwinnett’s teacher annual turnover rates far exceeded those of the state, as well as national rates. The state has been running 9 percent, the nation at 11 percent, and Gwinnett at 13 percent. In schools containing lower income students,the rate averages 21%. (IS THAT FOR GWINNETT?)
Monica Rosen, CEO of the consultancy, indicated that there was a discrepancy in regard to the proportion of black and Latino students in each school versus African American and Hispanic teachers. Only 30 percent of Gwinnett’s teachers are Black and Latino, versus two thirds of students being Black and Latino.
Gwinnett County School District gets a “B” on its report card, pre-pandemic, per the State Governor’s Office of Student Achievement. See that site for their criteria. However, Gwinnett County schools vary widely regarding their performance. There are many reasons for this, including factors related to income, and teacher retention/performance, addressed here.
Many schools got an “A”. Many more got a “B” or “C.”
Here are the “D” and “F” rankings, the schools that need the most improvement:
D Rated Elementary schools: Anniston, Anderson-Livsey, Meadowcreek, Nesbit, North Metro, Rockbridge, Simonton and Winn Holt.
D Rated Middle Schools: Jordan, Lilburn, Moore, Richards and Snellville.
F Rated Middle Schools: Gwinnett Intervention Ed Center (East/West), International Transition Center and Summerour.
D Rated High Schools: Central Gwinnett, Meadowcreek and Shiloh.
F Rated High Schools: Gwinnett Intervention Ed Center (East/West), International Transition Center and Phoenix.
The state school superintendent established a Task Force on Teacher Burnout, composed of ten of the top teachers in the state and other key parties. Their report makes a multitude of recommendations as to actions to correct deficiencies.
Recommendations including items like: reducing class size, cutting down on bureaucracy and redundancies, providing extra pay for added tasks, adding support staff, having higher pay based on longevity throughout a teacher’s career, supporting increased teacher input, assisting teachers with mentoring when needed, and strengthening existing mental health programs for both students and teachers.
Instead of sending checks back to residents, in effect buying their votes, our state budget surplus needs to be focused on reducing the rate of attrition of our public-school teachers. Unless we have dedicated, well qualified educators, our children will continue to suffer.
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