PERRYSBURG – Hiring issues are starting to hit the Perrysburg school district.

“The number of candidates we are getting for certain positions is much, much less than what we had in the past,” Don Christie, executive director of human resources, said at Friday’s board of education meeting. “I think science is the perfect example. We had four applicants for a high science teacher position, whereas in the past we would have had 30 applicants for that position.”

The school board work session was changed to Friday morning, the last possible day to get new hires added to the employee roster. The date is based on the state-mandated final day for public schools to record resignations for the next school year.

Christie spent five years as the principal of Perrysburg Junior High and just began his duties as Director of Human Resources.

“I think it really starts at our universities. Their enrollments are even lower in the education field,” Christie said. “I think younger people are say, ‘Is this a field I want to get into?’ In light of pressures of being a teacher, from public pressure to other things.”

He listed off factors that he has heard as concerns both in job interviews and from some who have resigned. More than just pay, there are requirements for continuing education, which the teacher must pay for out-of-pocket, to quality of life issues related to the 24-hour nature of parental and student questions that come over the internet.

“When you go through (the education) with four years and a masters (degree), there has to be a passion. When you look at pay, over time, for those types of degrees, we need to be getting that back in where it needs to be as well,” Christie said.

He’s seeing both resignations and normal attrition.

“We’re seeing both. We’re also seeing people just stepping away completely from the profession. They are saying that the rigors, the pressures and the stress that goes with this isn’t worth what it needs to be,” Christie said. “We’ve seen more and more of that. We’re also seeing people staying in education, but moving to another position. But we are seeing people leaving the profession, that we just wouldn’t have seen in the past.”

Board member Lori Reffert is the senior director of talent acquisition and management for Toledo Public Schools and shared her experiences in attempting to hire personnel this year.

She said that part of the problem also rests with the state. There is a one-way reciprocity with teacher certifications, where other states will accept Ohio teachers, but teachers need to pass the Ohio test to teach beyond their first temporary year in the state.

Simple location issues have also cropped up.

“If you live in Lima, I get it, with $5 gas,” Reffert said.

“Think about it. If you go to college and you get a math degree or a science degree, do you want to go into education, or go become an engineer and make double the income?” Christie asked.

Seven teachers were contracted for the 2022-23 school year, with four resignations since the last board meeting. Additional contracts for three certified personnel, two academic assessors, two homebound tutors, a monitor and a substitute teacher. Several positions will have additional hours.

Christie noted that a position just opened up for an art teacher and an intervention specialist.

Transportation positions continue to be difficult to fill. The district lost a bus driver and a mechanic. The positions still need to be filled. Christy said bus driving positions are difficult to fill nationwide.

He also pointed out during the meeting that a bus mechanic the district attempted to hire failed to qualify, because the applicant did not pass a health test related to the commercial drivers license requirement. All mechanics must be able to also drive a bus.