69ý

Recruitment & Retention

Technology Eases Teacher Recruitment for School Districts

By Ann Bradley — March 10, 1999 3 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print
Email Copy URL

The New Haven Unified School District in California was short a hard-to-find science teacher just weeks before school was to open last summer.

But thanks to its savvy use of technology to recruit teachers, the perfect candidate found the district’s World Wide Web site, filled out an electronic application, spoke to administrators over the phone, faxed in her references, and sat through a video interview at a Kinko’s printing store near her home in Seattle.

In just two days, she was hired.

About This Series

“When she got here for her orientation, she was just starting to receive paper applications from other districts,” said Jim O’Laughlin, the associate superintendent for personnel.

New Haven Unified’s gain was other districts’ loss. In a state where schools are projected to need about 25,000 teachers a year to keep up with class-size reductions and enrollment growth, the competition for qualified teachers is intense.

“None of it is sophisticated technology,” Mr. O’Laughlin said of the recruitment system the district is using. “Frankly, everybody could be doing it if they really pursued it.”

While the use of electronic tools is far from common in teacher recruitment, it’s likely to increase, experts say. Advocates of reform in the profession are urging states and districts to step up their use of technology to streamline their often haphazard efforts to find new teachers.

The National Commission on Teaching & America’s Future, in its 1996 report, praised New Haven Unified’s efforts and recommended that other districts shape up their recruitment and hiring practices.

‘Where the Candidates Are’

“The biggest challenge in the electronic age is districts’ getting to where the candidates are,” said Charles Marshall, the executive director of the American Association for Employment in Education, based in Evanston, Ill. “A lot of candidates are so attuned to using the [Internet] and doing their college work on it--if they don’t find it on the Net, it doesn’t exist.”

U.S. Secretary of Education Richard W. Riley announced last month that the Education Department was creating a national job bank and clearinghouse for teacher recruitment. The job bank will provide teachers with information on vacancies nationwide and link districts to a potential pool of new hires. The clearinghouse will offer a searchable database of information on financial aid, teacher education programs, licensure requirements, and local contacts for aspiring teachers.

In California, the California Center for Teaching Careers, or CalTeach, runs an interactive recruitment network by which people interested in teaching can find information about jobs, and districts can advertise their positions.

CalTeach, created in 1997 by then-Gov. Pete Wilson and the legislature and run by the California State University system, also began a series of public-service announcements in January to help recruit teachers.

Oklahoma’s state regents for higher education are working on an interactive, electronic job service that will enable licensed teachers to post their resumes and districts to advertise job openings. The site is expected to go online in the fall.

More information is available on New Haven Unified’s Web site, , or from CalTeach at .

A version of this article appeared in the March 10, 1999 edition of Education Week as Technology Eases Teacher Recruitment for School Districts

Events

School & District Management Webinar Crafting Outcomes-Based Contracts That Work for Everyone
Discover the power of outcomes-based contracts and how they can drive student achievement.
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
School & District Management Webinar
Harnessing AI to Address Chronic Absenteeism in 69ý
Learn how AI can help your district improve student attendance and boost academic outcomes.
Content provided by 
School & District Management Webinar EdMarketer Quick Hit: What’s Trending among K-12 Leaders?
What issues are keeping K-12 leaders up at night? Join us for EdMarketer Quick Hit: What’s Trending among K-12 Leaders?

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.

Read Next

Recruitment & Retention Explainer 4 Things to Know About the Messy Landscape of Grow-Your-Own Teacher Prep
From residencies and apprenticeships to disparate grow-your-own programs, locally focused teacher preparation is in flux.
7 min read
Linear Style iconic illustration of mentoring and training in an abstract pattern.
DigitalVision Vectors/Getty + Education Week
Recruitment & Retention Opinion Want to Retain Teachers? Here's What Districts and 69ý Can Do
Severe teacher shortages persist. Educators suggest what schools and districts can do to fill those posts.
11 min read
Images shows colorful speech bubbles that say "Q," "&," and "A."
iStock/Getty
Recruitment & Retention 69ý Have Fewer Teacher Vacancies This Year. But Hiring Is Still Not Easy
69ý struggled less to fill teaching positions in the 2024-25 school year, but they still started the year with vacant teaching spots.
3 min read
Illustration on teacher staffing vacancies with spotlight on empty workspace in classroom.
Vanessa Solis/Education Week + Getty Images
Recruitment & Retention Q&A 69ý Can't Find Enough Teachers. A New Federal Center Aims to Help
The U.S. Department of Education's research agency has launched a new center focused on improving teacher staffing and retention.
6 min read
Photograph of a diverse group of educators meeting in the hallway of an elementary school.
E+