It seems that everywhere I go people want to talk about a teacher shortage. While I agree there are less qualified teachers today than twenty years ago, instead of complaining about the shortage I believe school districts need to be proactive in looking for ways to recruit teachers to their district. One intentional step we took was to meet with all 12th grade students who indicate they will be going into the field of education. We spent two hours with the students, answering questions on a variety of topics about certification, field experiences, interviews, and retirement savings. Once we were done, we took our students out to eat to continue our conversation and build relationships. Although post-secondary graduation is still a ways off for these students, we are hopeful our students will consider returning home to teach after their next graduation.
