The 1,200 teacher challenge

May 9, 2008

Dallas Morning News education blog reports the Dallas ISD needs to hire 1,200 new teachers by next fall — about 200 more than usual. 

We have great kids, we have a very good department, and Dallas pays better than most of the suburban districts in the area.  Vacancies existed through most of the school year.  Good candidates went other places.  It’s frustrating.

I’ll wager the hiring process would go faster, and work better, if teacher pay in Dallas were $5,000 higher.  I’d wager, as an administrator, that the $5,000/year raise for teachers would provide greater savings in hiring, tutoring, testing, and all other areas of academic performance.

But, then, I think supply/demand economics often works.  What do I know?