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New Teacher Project: late hiring, placement process and evaluations hinder SFUSD retention
Summary
A New Teacher Project presentation to the board found late hiring and non-mutual placements cost the district candidates and reduce principal and teacher satisfaction; it reported 38% of tenured and 48% of probationary teachers plan to leave within five years and recommended earlier contracts, mutual-consent placements and evaluation reform.
The New Teacher Project presented findings to the Board of Education on Feb. 3 identifying staffing, hiring and evaluation practices that limit San Francisco Unified School District's ability to recruit and retain teachers. Tim Daly and Andrew Garland summarized four main findings: late hiring causes loss of candidates to other districts; many placements are not made by mutual consent and produce poor matches; the evaluation system has limited constructive impact; and central-office services could improve recruitment and retention.
Key data and recommendations: Presenters said late offers (often not sent until late summer) cause the district to lose applicants, particularly in high-need areas such as math and science. They suggested moving hiring earlier (including binding early contracts), implementing mutual-consent placements wherever possible, building an online placement system to facilitate matches between principals and candidates, and partnering with an independent group to redesign the teacher evaluation process.
The presenters also shared retention data: roughly 38 percent of tenured teachers and 48 percent of probationary teachers reported they do not plan to remain in the district for five years. Board members asked about compensation and housing issues as drivers of departure; presenters acknowledged compensation and cost-of-living pressures and offered to expand the report to analyze those factors further.
Why it matters: Teacher recruitment and retention directly affect classroom stability and student outcomes. Board members and staff expressed interest in follow-up analysis, possible pilot changes to hiring timelines, and further discussion in committee.
