MCCSC is starting the 2022-23 school year understaffed. Why?

Editor's note: This story has been corrected to reflect the average teacher salaries in both the state and the MCCSC. There has also been a line added to clarify the effects of the referendum.

Teachers livestreaming to try and teach two classes at a time. Students cycling through four new teachers in one year. Teachers who have taught for decades, debating whether it’s worth it to return in August.

These are all situations Paul Farmer, president of the Monroe County Education Association, has recently seen as Monroe County wades through the teacher shortage.

Like schools around the country, the Monroe County Community School Corp. is struggling to fill teaching and support staff positions. There are still about 2,300 teaching positions posted on the Indiana Department of Education’s new online job board, and this doesn’t even include jobs at MCCSC.

As of July 25, the MCCSC had about 15 unfilled teaching positions and about 70 other open positions, from custodians to cooks to paraprofessionals, according to its employment page. About 40 positions were for special education paraprofessionals. The first day of class at MCCSC is Aug. 3.

The shortage is due to several factors, ranging from pay to political pressure, Farmer said.

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“I don’t want to say that it’s just a common thing now … but it’s just not the same as what it used to be,” he said. “It’s not just teachers, it’s the whole educational profession, from bus drivers to cooks to paraprofessionals to teachers to administrators.”

Some open positions listed on the MCCSC’s employment page are filled but won’t be removed until the onboarding process is complete, Erin Stalbaum, MCCSC’s new assistant superintendent of professional learning and human resources, said in an email to the Herald-Times. It’s not unusual for the corporation to have open positions at this point in the summer, she said.

Stalbaum did not comment on if there are more unfilled positions this year than usual.

Why is there a teacher shortage?

Indiana’s — and the nation’s — teacher shortage has evolved from a complex web of problems, Farmer said. One of the biggest issues is the increased demand placed on teachers in recent years, from parents to administrators to state politicians.

“The joy of, ‘Well, I just want to work with kids,’ it’s like, no, not worth it anymore,” Farmer said.

Indiana House Bill 1134, introduced in the state's 2022 legislative session, would have required teachers to publish their lesson plans a year in advance. It also would have banned teachers from teaching "divisive concepts" and given more power over curriculum to parents. It didn’t pass, but teachers are still often expected to post lesson plans, assignments and grades online.

Teachers especially felt this pressure during the height of the pandemic, Farmer said. In fact, many teachers and support staff never returned after the pandemic began. Although some simply left because they had to find higher paying jobs, as the pandemic placed families under financial stress.

In a 2022 survey from the National Education Association, most teachers said the best way to address burnout is by raising their salaries.

In the 2019-2020 school year, MCCSC teachers were paid an average salary of $$55,660. The average state teacher salary in the 2020-2021 school year was $53,997, according to a 2021 Indiana Teacher Compensation report.

If the upcoming referendum passes, each teacher in the MCCSC will get a $4,500 annual raise. Additionally, support staff would get an additional $2.25 an hour, bringing the minimum hourly wage to about $15 an hour.

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If the referendum doesn’t pass, the MCCSC will cut 100 positions, including teachers, aides and staff. Others would also likely leave due to the lack of pay increase, Farmer said.

“It would be bloodshed,” he said.

Why is it so hard to hire paraprofessionals?

Last year, the MCCSC ended the school year with about 20 unfilled paraprofessional positions, many in special education, Farmer said.

Paraprofessionals in the MCCSC make around $13 an hour and are usually only paid for the 180 days a year school is in session.

Before the pandemic, several paraprofessionals in the MCCSC were people who didn’t need a job but wanted to help kids, Farmer said. Many of them didn’t return once the pandemic began, whether they got a better paying job, needed to stay at home to help family members or simply didn’t want to put themselves at risk.

When the MCCSC struggles to fill positions, Farmer said, it focuses on what positions must be filled by federal law. This includes special education positions.

Paraprofessionals working in other areas are sometimes moved to special education because of the law, he said, but then leave the corporation entirely.

“They go, ‘No, I did not apply for this job, and you’re moving me to this job and I don’t want to do it,’” he said.

Stalbaum did not comment on if the MCCSC specifically struggles to fill special education positions.

What happens when positions go unfilled?

As president of the local teacher’s union, Farmer sees a lot of turnover in the MCCSC, he said. Out of the 820 members of the collective bargaining unit, he sees about 80 to 100 new hires every year.

Despite the high number of unfilled support staff positions, the corporation doesn’t usually have more than a few open teaching positions by the start of the school year, Farmer said.

When there are unfilled teaching positions, the corporation has to fill the gaps. Sometimes, this means increasing class sizes. Other times, it means filling the position with a long-term sub, who often isn’t qualified to teach the class normally. Occasionally, it means resorting to out-of-the-box ideas, such as livestreaming from one class to another.

If the 2022 referendum doesn’t pass, the MCCSC will have to increase its class sizes, Farmer said.

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As for paraprofessionals, teachers often find a way to work without them despite their immense help, Farmer said.

"It's almost a reality if you're supposed to have an aide in your classroom, well, don't count on it," he said.

The corporation actively recruits paraprofessionals, instructional aides and guest teachers throughout the year, Stalbaum said.

“These positions allow us to be responsive and agile in responding to student learning needs that arise throughout the academic year,” she said.

Stalbaum did not comment on what happens in the corporation when positions remain unfilled.

Reach reporter Christine Stephenson at cstephenson@heraldt.com.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: MCCSC to start the 2022-2023 school year with positions unfilled