WHAT CAN SCHOOL DISTRICTS DO TO FIND AND KEEP TEACHERS?
School districts have come up with some very creative ways to woo teachers to their schools. Following is a sampling of some of the creative enticements and other programs that some school districts are offering. • Massachusetts offered incredible $20,000 signing bonuses to exceptional new teachers, the money paid out over four years. The state had more than 800 applicants and thousands of requests for information from people in 36 states and two foreign countries. • New York City school officials have recruited people from other countries. Austrians who are teaching math and science were recruited in part with a flyer that pronounced, “If you can read this, have we got a deal for you!” City officials interviewed the Austrians via teleconferencing. Housed temporarily in dorms, the new recruits received a crash course in New York culture and learned how to start bank accounts. New York school officials have also looked to Puerto Rico and Spain for middle school Spanish teachers. In the
