Updates/News
JCPS to Partner with Teach Kentucky to Address Teacher Shortage
- August 12, 2022
- Posted by: Jill Cobb
- Category: Partnerships Teach Kentucky Community Teacher Recruitment
To help combat the teacher shortage, Jefferson County Public Schools has entered into a new agreement with local nonprofit Teach Kentucky to attract and retain qualified candidates to the school system. The agreement marks the maturation of a long-running 21-year institutional relationship.
“Establishing this new partnership is a milestone in our relationship, moving Teach Kentucky toward sustainability,” says Rowan Claypool, President and Founder of Teach Kentucky. “With the new partnership, Teach Kentucky shares risk of retention and is paid on performance and recruiting of diverse candidates.”
This agreement is timely because Teach Kentucky is an effective solution to address the teacher crisis at JCPS. Like many school districts across the nation, JCPS is confronting unprecedented classroom vacancies, said Claypool.
Teach Kentucky recruits nationally attracting well-qualified college graduates who would not otherwise come to Louisville. These recruits teach in local schools focusing on hard-to-fill critical content areas, he said.
“Teach Kentucky is razor focused on recruiting in essential content areas — STEM, Special Education and English as a Second Language (ESL),” says Claypool.
To date, the organization has recruited 405 individuals over 21 years to teach in Louisville schools with 190 active teachers serving primarily in critical content areas. This summer’s incoming recruiting class of 34 teachers hail from 19 states and will fill vacancies almost exclusively in JCPS, according to Claypool.
“Simply stated, Teach Kentucky creates a competitive search environment for candidates to teach in our local public schools while opening channels of national recruitment that would not otherwise be available to the district,” said Claypool.
The majority of these new teachers are staying beyond the program’s two-year commitment, choosing to settle locally and serve as educational leaders within the district and greater Louisville. During the two-year program, teachers earn a Master of Arts in Teaching degree from partner institutions (University of Louisville, Spalding University or Asbury College) as well as a Kentucky teacher certification.
Looking forward toward recruitment for 2022-23, Teach Kentucky is “continuing its emphasis in recruiting candidates from diverse backgrounds and underserved populations, aligning with JCPS’s equity and diversity goals,” Claypool says.
Facts About Teach Kentucky and JCPS
Total teacher recruited to JCPS: 405
Total number college and universities recruited from: 215
Teach Kentucky Teachers currently employed by JCPS: 190
Newest Recruits: 34
Critical hiring needs (STEM, Special Education and ESL): 65 %
Teachers of Color: 30%
Teach Kentucky’s mission to recruit highly motivated new teachers to launch their education careers in Louisville. Teach Kentucky teachers fill an essential need for local education institutions while at the same time bringing new talent to our city.