School District No. 91 (Nechako Lakes) has been struggling to recruit teachers for the 2017/18 school year.
鈥淎fter hiring about 20 new teachers by early July, School District 91 has faced challenges attracting and filling positions this summer,鈥� said Manu Madhok, assistant superintendent for School District 91. 鈥淭his situation is a result of the increased hiring across B.C. and we know there are many districts facing similar challenges.鈥�
Earlier this year, the B.C. government committed $330 million to settle a dispute with the B.C. Teachers鈥� Federation, funding 2600 new teacher positions. After the announcement, School District 91 anticipated that the additional hiring across the province would put a further strain on attracting teachers to the region.
鈥淎s a rural and remote school district, hiring qualified staff has been difficult for many years,鈥� Madhok said after the announcement earlier this year. 鈥淏oth the [school] district and the 亚洲天堂 Lake and Nechako Teacher鈥檚 Union anticipate challenges recruiting teachers to fill these new positions.鈥�
As of last week, School District 91 still had 14 full-time and part-time positions open.
鈥淲e have positions available in all our four main communities [亚洲天堂 Lake, Vanderhoof, Fraser Lake and Fort St. James], but the greatest need at this time is in Fort St. James.鈥�
Madhok said School District 91 expects to meet the needs of students by asking current staff to fill in the gaps.
鈥淲e expect to place our full-time teachers on call into these vacant positions to ensure we have classrooms ready for students,鈥� he said. 鈥淎ny updates for students and parents will be sent home in September.鈥�
