PASCO COUNTY — The Pasco County School District will host an instructional hiring event on Thursday, March 23, in an effort to fill open positions.
Leaders are aggressively looking to fill current vacancies and anticipated ones for the next school year.
The hiring event is from 5 - 7 p.m. at the Cypress Creek High School gymnasium, 8845 Old Pasco Road, Wesley Chapel.
“With this particular event we’re able to get talented, knowledgeable candidates with a passion for teaching in front of those hiring managers so that they can expedite the process of getting hired,” said Kelly Smith, recruiter for Pasco County Schools.
Principals from across the district will be there, ready to conduct interviews and hire qualified candidates.
“If you have a passion for teaching at all, if you have a bachelor’s degree, and you are ready for a change. If you’ve always thought about teaching but you weren’t really sure where to start, and the thought of becoming certified seems a little bit overwhelming, you have to go through the state. That can be a lot. Come out, we have our certification team that is going to be on hand, and our on boarding,” said Kelly.
Pasco has had teacher vacancies throughout the year, consistently averaging about 200 open positions.
Currently, there are 217 vacancies and last year around this time there were 116.
“The teacher shortage is not unique to Pasco County. We know this, right? There’s a shortage across the state, across the country so we’re all dealing with those challenges,” said Smith.
The district is doing what it can to hire more educators.
“The unique thing that we do have going for us this time around that we do have an increase in instructional pay. We did pass our referendum this pass fall so that pay is going to continue to increase for our teachers,” said Smith.
Right now, starting teacher salaries in Pasco County are $46,425.
However, with he referendum, the district hopes to get that number to at least $47,000 within the next school year.
For anyone interested in a teaching position, they’re encouraged to attend the event and register to reserve a spot.
