The Goshen Community Schools Board approved an agreement Monday night that could help the district recruit more teachers.
At the board’s Oct. 14 meeting, Assistant Superintendent for Human Resources Lori Line said the HR department had been approached by Grand Canyon University about an agreement to recruit teachers from within the district.
The agreement would allow the university to help school staff find scholarships and apply for education classes. It would also offer staff members a discounted rate on their degrees.
Line said it’s a chance for paraprofessionals, nutrition workers and other school staff to pursue teaching as a career.
“We have a lot of great people right here in our corporation, but they’ve talked to me, they can’t afford it,” Line said at the October meeting. “They can’t not work and go to school at the same time. This is an opportunity for them that they can.”
Superintendent Steven Hope said the partnership could also help offset the teacher shortage the district is facing due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I think this program is brimming with potential for Goshen to help us end this teacher shortage, build teachers right here in our own community and, especially, add minority communities into teaching,” Hope said at the October meeting.
Hope added Monday that since the partnership comes at no cost to the school district, it’s a low-stakes way to potentially boost the district’s teaching staff.
“If it works, this could be a good pipeline for bringing new teachers into Goshen. If it doesn’t work, there’s really no negative about this since there’s no financial commitment,” he said. “I recommend that we just see how it goes.”
The school board agreed, unanimously approving the partnership Monday.
Contact Gemma atgdicarlo@wvpe.orgor follow her on Twitter at@gemma_dicarlo.
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