by Sarah Nachin
HERNANDO SUN WRITER
On Thursday, May 23, the Hernando County School District will sponsor a teacher recruitment job fair. It will take place 4 p.m. – 8 p.m. in the district’s board room at 919 North Broad Street in Brooksville. The goal of the event is to fill the many teaching positions that are vacant now or will become vacant in the coming months. At this time there are more than forty vacancies in all grade levels. That number will increase in the summer as teachers retire and others leave the field for various reasons. The need is especially great in Exceptional Student Education, secondary math and gifted education positions.
Michael Maine, current principal at Spring Hill Elementary will take over his new role as Senior Recruiter for the school district in July. He spoke passionately regarding what the school board is seeking in terms of the qualifications for prospective teachers and what the county offers to its educational staff.
“We are looking for individuals that have a passion for students and a true love for learning. If an individual holds only a BA degree and is willing to work hard and go through all of the necessary steps to become a fully certified teacher, those individuals are strongly encouraged to apply,” Maine states.
Other important qualities that Maine looks for in prospective educators are their ability to build strong relationships with students and a good professional work ethic. Maine stresses that these teachers will get ample support from the schools in their new career.
There are a number of steps that prospective teachers go through in order to become certified to teach. First, they need to hold at least a Bachelor of Arts degree. Then, they apply for their certification through the Florida Department of Education (DOE) by uploading their official school transcripts. Once the DOE approves the transcripts, it issues an official Statement of Eligibility that lets the individual know the next steps he or she must take in order to receive a temporary teaching certificate. Anyone interested in more details on the entire process can contact the Human Resources Department at the school district and speak to a certification specialist. The phone number is 352-797-7000.
In Hernando County the starting salary for a first-year teacher with no teaching experience is $40,054.50. This rate is currently higher than the surrounding counties of Pasco, Hillsborough and Citrus. Teachers that move here from other states or Florida school districts may bring up to 10 years’ experience with them when they are hired in this county.
Although Maine has high expectations for the upcoming job fair, he knows that there is competition in the marketplace. Recruitment and retention of qualified teachers is a challenging and on-going process.
“We will continue to work hard using a variety of recruiting methods to recruit and attract the very best candidates for our open positions. We want to use traditional and non-traditional methods of recruitment and retention. Our goal is to get creative and think outside the box. We want to stay one step ahead and be out in front of the curve. Current teacher prospects have options in today’s market; therefore, we must provide something different that will attract them to the Hernando County School District. I believe our team has what it takes and our district has so much to offer.”
For more information on the upcoming Job Fair go to:
https://www.hernandoschools.org/cms/lib/FL02211909/Centricity/Domain/4/JobFair_2-ACC.pdf
