FYI from BSF, 03.11.22
The (Almost?) Great Resignation
Before the Omicron wave had burnt out, there was a burst of similar headlines.
And if you looked at teacher and principal data quickly, just released by the Commonwealth, you would find reason to believe that these worries were founded.
Anyone who has spent any time around data knows that two things can be powerful and misleading: anecdotes and scale.
It is highly likely that you, a family member, or a friend knows someone that has left the teaching profession, even recently. The headlines, therefore, carry more weight, as your personal experience confirms the “great resignation” trend to be true.
Except it’s not, so far.
Teacher and principal retention in Boston and Massachusetts is actually higher than it was 5 years ago. It increased with the pandemic, only dropping last year. Same graphs as above, but more years. Scale matters.
Massachusetts is not alone in representing this trend of upward data that undercuts a pervasive narrative.
For now.
There is one risk that could continue to push retention in the wrong direction, and it’s not the pandemic. In Boston, it is a cascade of turnover.
The departure of a superintendent has a domino effect. Executive-level staff leaves; they manage assistant superintendents. Assistant superintendents leave; they manage principals. Principals leave; they manage teachers. Teachers leave. Even the appearance of potential turnover creates turnover.
Why? So many things that drive educators' satisfaction - working conditions, professional development, feeling empowered and joyful at work - are created by the people in the school building. That is probably why one of the most significant factors in retaining a teacher is the quality of the school’s principal. Turnover disrupts these elements, leading to lower retention, and then more turnover, leading to lower retention. Turnover in schools comes at a big organizational, learning, and financial cost.
The hundreds of millions of dollars available to Boston’s schools could be deployed in a variety of creative, evidenced-based ways to retain educators for next year. Administrative support could reduce the load for principals, freeing them up to spend more time with and developing their staff. Professional development and mental health supports could buoy teachers through the remaining months of the year. City leaders could authentically engage with and lift up the work of educators. Schools could do more fun stuff. Could we rethink/create flexibility in scheduling? Many school systems are experimenting with retention bonuses. And so on.
A potential staffing crunch in our schools will likely not be forestalled by hiring, especially in a challenging labor market. It could be forestalled by keeping and sustaining our current educators.
Fortunately, we have resources and a little more time still on our side.
Reopening Boston, MA, and Beyond
The Boston Public Health Commission ended Boston’s state of emergency, and advised on metrics to drop school mask mandates.
Data from Boston implies we are very close to that threshold. The weekly COVID report showed declines in student and staff reported cases by 80% and 70.7%, respectively, in Boston, with significant drops across in the Commonwealth, the vast majority of which has no school mask mandate. Still little progress is being made in increasing child vaccination in Boston, and closing racial gaps.
School budget season is in full swing, and Newton received some attention this week by proposing staff reductions in response to enrollment decline. It is interesting to compare Newton and Boston’s proposed FY23 teacher staffing in relation to enrollment over the past five years.
The teacher strike continues in Minneapolis, calling for increased pay and lower class size.
What could fill these gaps? It does not appear the Biden’s administration aggressive school funding goals may be met. This did not come up at Secretary Cardona’s brief visit to Boston last Friday.
Other Matters
The search for Boston’s new superintendent officially commenced with a listening session on Wednesday. Over 200 people signed up for public comment. A variety of perspectives and opinions were shared, also noting many families and advocates raised concerns about literacy. The topic of state receivership was also broached.
Three more listening sessions are scheduled over the coming weeks. Full process here.