School districts face ongoing teacher shortage, mull building employee housing.

On May 1, representatives from Monterey Peninsula Unified School District traveled across state lines to a recruitment fair in Reno, Nevada to make a pitch to potential new teachers for the 2017-18 school year. They weren’t alone.

Since the 2008 recession, California’s K-12 schools have been suffering from a teacher shortage, a residual effect of slashed budgets. Local school districts are adopting tactics like early recruitment. The process of hiring for the next academic year, which would usually start in mid-winter, now begins in late fall and extends into spring.

MPUSD is mostly looking for teachers qualified to teach special education, math and science, and district officials have participated in as many as 18 job and recruitment fairs this school year, in Northern and Southern California, Nevada and as far away as Oregon. But it’s not all about casting a wide net.

The district has also introduced a tuition reimbursement program of up to $10,000 a year for teachers hired for special ed, math or science. MPUSD Superintendent PK Diffenbaugh says this benefit helps incentivize current aids and assistants to become full-fledged teachers, and he points to a nearby credential program at CSU Monterey Bay. “It’s not just about recruiting aggressively, but looking to our own talent and building from that base,” Diffenbaugh says.

Another factor: High housing costs, along with health insurance, are deterrents to teacher recruitment retention, says Monterey Bay Teacher’s Association President Allyson Schweifler. “Potential candidates are weighing everything,” she says. “Housing costs are only rising, and health care is some of the most expensive in the area.”

To address those rising costs, MPUSD is considering building employee housing.

At Alisal Union School District in Salinas, the teacher shortage is equally challenging. The K-6 district serves many English-language learners, and is looking for candidates who speak Spanish. “Those are the golden-ticket candidates,” AUSD spokesperson Marcos Cabrera says. “[Bilingual teachers] are in high demand in the state and nationally.”

On the state level, some relief may come through SB 807, the Teacher Recruitment and Retention Act, which is currently in committee hearings. The bill is twofold: It would reimburse tuition and tests needed for teaching credentials and it would also allow for state income tax breaks after five years of teaching.

Even if SB 807 passes, the teacher shortage remains a local matter: “The state can help,” Diffenbaugh says, “but it’s up to the districts to be creative.”