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Teachers warn of staffing and workload crisis; MSD Lawrence Township board announces teacher‑feedback task force
Summary
Amanda Rose, LEA co‑president, told the MSD Lawrence Township board that 19 teachers resigned in the first nine weeks and a survey found 75% of respondents were considering leaving; the board responded by forming a task force to gather teacher feedback and make recommendations to improve working conditions.
Amanda Rose, co‑president of the Lawrence Education Association and a STEAM teacher at Harrison Hill, told the MSD Lawrence Township board during public comment that the district faces a severe staffing problem and troubling working conditions.
"Unfortunately, our new contract is not enough to keep 19 of our amazing educators from resigning within the first 9 weeks of the school year," Rose said. She told the board a union survey of 325 respondents found that "75% of teacher respondents said they were considering leaving the district." Rose also raised concerns about class sizes, loss of prep time and an "unmanageable workload associated with LSI Marzano." She urged the board to adopt policies addressing class size and prep time and to scrutinize district contracts that she said divert resources from teachers.
Rose alleged the district has spent "approximately 2 to $3,000,000 for services from LSI Marzano" in the past two years and said there were discrepancies in claims reports that made part of that spending difficult to verify. She asked the board to be more active in financial oversight and to return resources to classroom teachers.
Board members responded at length. President Buss opened by reaffirming the board’s support for teachers and announced the formation of a task force "dedicated to gathering feedback from our teaching staff and developing recommendations to enhance the working environment." The board emphasized that collective bargaining is governed by state statute and that the task force is intended to gather input and propose non‑bargaining recommendations.
Superintendent Dr. Smith told the crowd, "We hear the assignment," and directed administration to follow up with teachers and union leaders. Several board members expressed solidarity with teachers and described steps to engage with legislators and state leaders about broader funding and policy issues. The board said it expects to consider final contract approval at a public meeting on Nov. 11 and scheduled a public board meeting on Nov. 4 for advance comment.
The board did not vote on substantive policy changes at this meeting; it approved the formation of a task force and requested staff and union leaders to work together on next steps.
What’s next: The board said it will convene the task force and report back with recommendations; the contract remains scheduled for board consideration on Nov. 11.
