One of the top selling points for a teaching job in New York is the pay. According to the National Education Association, teachers in New York have the highest average salary in the country at just over $75,000.
Still some districts are already seeing a shortage. “Art and music it appears at least in our district are the two areas where there are a number of openings,” explained Niagara Falls City School Deputy Superintendent, Mark Laurrie.
Erie 1 Boces provides educational support to districts across Erie County and western New York. Reps there say they aren't surprised. They too are seeing shortages in certain subject areas like secondary math, science, foreign language, English language learners and special education.
Nancy Bojanowski is the executive director for human resources at Erie 1 Boces. She thinks the shortage stems from a recent focus on the negative qualities of the profession like testing and teacher evaluations. “The love of student learning needs to be promoted so that they choose education as a profession.” “The rigors of teaching, the rigors of passing your teaching certification are higher than they have ever been. Higher than we've ever seen,” added Laurrie.
 |
Live video, the latest news and no surveys - download the WKBW app |
 |
News, forecast and Bills newsletters delivered to your e-mail inbox |
That's why they say the new public service campaign is needed to attract teachers. It's being launched by the state education commissioner and the SUNY chancellor and it's designed to revamp the profession. The goal is to increase enrollment and interest in the important field of education.
