Teacher Shortage Hits Princeton Schools, Recruiting Program In Place

PRINCETON, NJ — Princeton Public Schools is grappling with an educational staff shortage, as it works to fill various teaching vacancies in the district.

Teacher shortage is a nationwide issue with roughly 300,000 educators leaving their jobs between Feb. 2020 and May 2022, according to August 2022 data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, reported by the Wall Street Journal.

As of Tuesday, the district has three elementary school teaching vacancies, one in the high school, four in the middle school and two substitute teacher openings.

The staff shortage has prompted the school district to develop “closer ties with universities and colleges that have teacher training programs.”

“In addition, PPS is reaching out to other colleges and universities and will encourage college students in all academic disciplines to consider teaching,” PPS told Patch.

“Some of our staff members have successfully contacted their alma maters to encourage those institutions to send qualified applicants to PPS.”

In a letter to the community a few weeks ago, Superintendent Carol Kelley said many teachers were stepping up to take additional responsibilities to fill the gap.

However, the school district said they have made a great deal of progress in recent weeks and are currently doing “much, much better than the national average.”

Apart from developing close ties with universities and colleges, PPS is working with Central Jersey Pride (CJ Pride) to attract a diverse applicant pool. The school district also continues to host job fairs “which have proved to be very successful.”

“Potential applicants meet on the spot with representatives from PPS and this has generated many qualified candidates,” PPS said.

In January, Gov. Phil Murphy signed a new law allowing retired teachers to go back to the classroom, to fill the vacancies in various school districts.

New Jersey also rolled out a pilot program to allow people with workplace experience to seek teacher certification through the state’s alternate route program even if their standardized test scores or grade-point averages to not reach the minimum levels, an NJ.com report said. More: Teacher Shortage Squeezes NJ Schools; Pilot Program Aims To Draw More

But these short-term solutions may not be enough, according to Becky Pringle, President, National Association for Teachers. "Too often people want a silver bullet solution or will implement a Band-Aid approach. These shortages are severe. They are chronic. And the educator shortages that are gripping our public schools, colleges, and universities will only be fixed with systematic, sustained solutions,” Pringle said in a statement on the organization's website.

The NEA, the nation’s largest union representing more than 3 million educators, released a report outlining solutions to tackle the educator shortage.

On Sept. 27, the U.S. Department of Education announced over $60 million in awards to address the teacher shortage and help ensure long-term investments in teacher pipeline and development programs across the country.

To apply for a position in Princeton Public Schools, click here.

Have a correction or news tip? Email sarah.salvadore@patch.com