Board hears multi-pronged teacher recruitment and retention plan, including Siena residency and 'Teachers of Tomorrow' awards

District staff told the board they are pursuing a layered recruitment and retention strategy that mixes external partnerships and internal pathways. Miss Thies described an Empire State University partnership that helps teaching assistants and paraprofessionals earn degrees with credit for prior learning; the district currently has four employees enrolled. Fred Engelhardt described a teacher residency partnership with Siena University funded by the U.S. Department of Labor that provides a year-long embedded residency and a master's degree; the program has grown from one participant in year one to five participants this past year, with expectations for continued growth.

Administrators also summarized adjustments to the district's relationship with NYU Steinhardt: the district ended tuition support at the close of the 2023–24 school year and has pivoted to hiring program participants as substitutes and paying mentor stipends when needed. The Teachers of Tomorrow grant was highlighted as a retention tool: the district awarded 65 employees $3,400 each and reported a roughly 90% retention rate across a four-year span for beneficiaries. Staff discussed tuition-reimbursement benefits negotiated with bargaining units and said they are exploring memoranda of agreement (MOA) to expand access without reopening full contract bargaining.

Board members asked whether grant tuition components could offset district tuition-reimbursement obligations, whether nontraditional recruits (international students) could be accommodated, and how to leverage alumni and CTE programs as ambassadors for recruitment. Engelhardt and others said some grants allow tuition use while other incentives are better targeted at life supports (childcare, housing assistance) that candidates prefer.