DOE teacher vacancies drop from 1,000 to 260

The state Department of Education is claiming success in cutting down public-school teacher job vacancies from last year’s 1,000-plus to 260, but the teachers union believes the DOE’s hiring 80 educators from the Philippines and heavily crediting a new online hiring system for much of the progress are misplaced.

Hawaii’s public schools, like schools around the nation, typically are short around 1,000 to 1,200 teachers each year, a problem exacerbated by lagging salaries and the COVID-19 pandemic. Overall the U.S. is short by about 300,000 teachers and support staff, according to the National Education Association union. Hawaii is under teacher-hiring pressure especially as the state works to open 465 new preschool classrooms by 2032 under the Ready Keiki initiative.

https://www.staradvertiser.com/2023/08/11/hawaii-news/doe-teacher-vacancies-drop-from-1000-to-260/