Hundreds of jobs still open for school districts in Southwest Florida

FORT MYERS, Florida – School districts across southwest Florida are facing an uphill battle to recruit teachers before the start of the new school year.

Lee County School District spokesman Rob Spicker (SDLC) says it’s not just about teachers. some counties like Lee County also need bus drivers.

The bottom line is that the first day of school is less than a month away and most SWFL districts solve the problem of finding available and qualified teachers–

“It is our aim to always start the year with a certified teacher in each room; this will require several hundred new teachers. So this goes on … the target is moving, so I can’t tell you today exactly how many we still have to fill. We’ll have a much better idea as we near the end of the month, ”said Spicker.

Spicker informs us that the district is using various recruitment incentives to bring more bus drivers into the district.

“We need bus drivers to make sure we can get every student to school and home on time. We have a number of incentives that eliminate upfront costs for them and we have increased the benefits, we have medical and dental services available to bus drivers from the start, ”says Spicker.

The teacher shortage comes as southwest Florida school districts move away from COVID restrictions and prepare for a normal looking school year

If we look around Southwest Florida:
(Click on each county for a link to vacancies)

Glades County Superintendent Dr. Alice Barfield says the need for teachers is widespread but can be even more difficult for smaller counties.

“We not only compete with our district, we compete with other surrounding districts in the region. For example, if you’re in Moore Haven, you could be in Fort Myers in an hour or West Palm in an hour, but between Moore Haven and Fort Myers you have Hendry County to go to, and between Moore Haven and West Palm They have Palm Beach County and they can pay their teachers a lot more, “Barfield said.

Dr. Barfield tells us they are using incentives like paying for a teacher certification to bring qualified teachers to their schools.

She says her fewer number of teachers needed shouldn’t mislead people into thinking that her requirements are lower than in other counties.

“That’s a big number in Glades County because we really need to move on to a non-existent workforce that isn’t here,” said Dr. Barfield.

The first day of school for the Glades and Lee Counties School Districts is August 10.

See similar https://www.fox4now.com/rebound/state-of-education/need-for-hire-hundreds-of-positions-still-open-for-school-districts-in-southwest-florida

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