From teachers to bus drivers: Brevard County seeks to fill hundreds of openings
Brevard Public Schools is still looking to fill hundreds of open positions in the classroom and on the road.
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The school district has made it well known that they are hiring.
Just in the last week, the Brevard Public Schools has held three job fairs.
Since the district announced a pay hike for bus drivers last month, it has received more than 100 applications. A dozen drivers have been hired and others are going through the hiring process.
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But the district does not expect to be fully staffed by the start of the school year.
There is less than a month left until Brevard County students return to the classroom, and the school district is still looking to hire about 80 more bus drivers.
They are also trying to fill about two hundred instructional openings in the classroom.
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“That includes classroom teachers, instructional assistants (and) coaches as well,” said Russell Bruhn, a district spokesman. “It’s not just classroom teachers. And we’re still trying to make headway on that over the next month ... as we get our plan together for Aug. 10.”
Bruhn said the district is still recruiting, hiring and placing employees.
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Jonathan Hilliard, of the Brevard Federation of Teachers, said he applauds the district’s recruitment efforts. But he said retention also has to be part of the equation as teachers and students return to the classroom.
“When the first day of school hits, it’s going to be our teachers right there holding those kids’ hands,” he said. “It’s going to be our teachers that will give and get them over those emotional, mental (and) academic challenges. Our teachers are the true heroes in this, and it’s going to be another tough start.”
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Hilliard said the teachers who are in the classroom now are among the most dedicated in their profession.
“They’re here for the long haul, because they’ve been through the storm,” he said. “They’ve been with us for the last 36 months of Covid and all of the things that Covid brought. And they’re still here. We have to take care of them.”
Click here to see all of the district’s job openings.
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