By Adam Berls

education

Only 1 teacher recruited in SD57 as part of new provincial incentive to hire rural teachers

Oct 31, 2023 | 4:18 PM

PRINCE GEORGE — Teacher recruitment and retention is a major issue facing our education system in BC. And though the province recently announced that northern BC would be getting 41 new teachers through new incentives, only 1 will be coming to School District 57.

For Daryl Beauregard, president of the Prince George District Teachers Association, the issues of teacher recruitment and retention, it goes back to ensuring that teachers want to stay in the profession.

“We’ve got to do something about actually ensuring that the teaching profession is an attractive profession across the board.” – Daryl Beauregard, President of the Prince George District Teachers Association

While the province is adding extra seats in post-secondary education programs, the real challenge is making B.C. an attractive place for teachers to work. The Board Chair of School District 57 admits that teacher retention and recruitment has been difficult and that conversations need to be had at all levels in order to find a concrete solution.

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Numbers provided to CKPG News from the Ministry of Education show a less positive picture. Only 1 teacher will be coming to SD57 as a result of the new incentive, a district that covers over 52,000 square kilometers. The Stikine SD87 school district recruited 11, the Nisga’a SD92 recruited 9. To the west, School District 91 Nechako Lakes only got 2 new teachers and vacancies across the northeast are still high.

“There are still at least 50 vacancies, and a lot of jobs are being filled with uncertified teachers.” – Daryl Beauregard, President of the Prince George District Teachers Association

There are at least 15 teaching vacancies in Prince George. The Ministry of Education says that the 41 teachers hired provides “a significant boost for staffing levels in schools throughout the northern region – especially for those serving smaller communities – and these incentives are a first step towards a broader suite of recruitment and retention initiatives, including the development, with sector partners, of a province-wide K-12 workforce strategy to recruit, train, hire, and retain more K-12 staff.”

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Twitter: @AdamBerls

Email: Adam.Berls@pattisonmedia.com