SYRACUSE, N.Y. (NCC News)— The Syracuse City School Department is experiencing a shortage of teaching staff in schools.
The number of positions needing to be filled is changing daily as new hires are made, according to Chief Academic Officer Laura Kelley.
Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic, teachers found themselves having to leave their positions as it was getting to be too difficult.
“To have so many little people depending on you while you’re going through this with your family and your children and your profession being up-ended, I think it’s a lot to put on our teachers” said Kelley.
In order to attract others to the profession, there are many programs implemented by the district to help future teachers with covering a variety of funds.
The goal is to make sure that individuals come in with the needed certifications to grant them teaching positions as soon as possible.
While the pandemic was very hard for the teachers, it was also hard for students, especially for those living in low-income communities.
“I don’t think there’s any secret that students who live in poverty have been disproportionately disadvantaged by the pandemic, and since so many of our students are economically disadvantaged in the city, we’re running to make sure that we’re attending to that every chance we get” said Kelley.
The school district is working to make sure they are doing their best to catch students up in their studies while also trying not to make the curriculum too overwhelming.
In order to avoid stressful situations for both teachers and students, the district continues to look for well-suited teachers to bring into Central New York’s schools.
Kelley hopes that more individuals will decide to pursue teaching as a career to make a difference in the lives of students.