BEECH GROVE, Ind. — The countdown to the start of the school year is on, and there will be a lot of empty classrooms.
The Indiana Department of Education said there are more than 2,300 open teaching positions in the state. The range of open positions varies depending on the district, as IPS has over 300, but Beech Grove has around six.
Beech Grove City Schools is one of the districts starting next week. They kicked off their new teacher orientation Wednesday, a week of training that welcomes the new employees to the district.
A lot of its new teachers hired right out of college said the shortage is nothing new.
"It's surprising that there are 2,000 jobs available with schools starting next week,” Noelle Skinner, a new 4th-grade teacher said, but she also said this seems to happen every year.
Danni Schweitzer is from a family of teachers and seeing the open position numbers shocks her family.
“Knowing about that shortage really hurts my heart because I am just so passionate about being here for the kids,” she said.
Even though there are still open positions at BGCS, the district plans to run like normal.
“The work of recruitment and the retention of educators is an everyday thing,” Superintendent Laura Hammock said. “Our principals work together to make sure that ends are met. It’s one more thing that's on the shoulders of our principals to deal with on the daily.”
Hammock said they are keeping open positions available until they find the right candidate. They plan on using the same hiring process, even if a candidate comes after the school year has started.
The new teachers will be meeting returning teachers next Monday before welcoming their students on Wednesday.
To see open teaching positions around the state, click here.
Other school openings this coming week include:
- Perry Township Schools, July 27
- Clark Pleasant Community Schools, July 27
- Wayne Township Schools, July 27
- Warren Township Schools, July 28
- Avon Community Schools, July 28
- Brownsburg Community Schools, July 28
- Kokomo School Corporation, July 28
- Mt. Vernon Community Schools, July 28