Staffing concerns plague WCPSS before start of school
WAKE COUNTY, N.C. (WTVD) -- In just a few days, thousands of kids on the traditional calendar will file into Wake County classrooms for the first day of school. The new school year will bring new faces and new staffing concerns.
The district says they have enough bus drivers for students going into the school year, after consolidating some bus routes.
The district has hired 697 new teachers and 372 are first-year instructors. They had orientation Friday to get ready for the school year ahead.
Even with all the new hires, the district say there are still 100 vacant teacher positions. On Monday, some classrooms will be without an assigned teacher; staff will be shuffled around until the district brings more people on board.
"We start with substitutes or our principals are really resilient at figuring out the best way to optimize staffing to make sure that every student has a qualified teacher in their room," said Wake County Recruitment and Retention Senior Director Raushawna Price. "Teacher pay always will continue to be an issue of concern, and absolutely it's challenging to find and bring in those quality candidates."
The district does have 2,200 teaching assistants on staff. Despite protests and rallies, even those jobs are in limbo.
State lawmakers are mulling over the budget. The Senate's version would slash thousands of TA positions, while the House's version would virtually keep funding enacted.
Wake officials would not discuss a contingency plan going into the upcoming school year.
"We continue, again, to be optimistic," said Price. "If there are other alternatives, we will look at that. But we continue to know that there are support for the Wake County Public School System and for our students. And we will continue to believe that will come to fruition for our students."
The TAs who return this year are not under contract. They will work at-will until an agreement is reached in the General Assembly.
