NYKids’ Presentation at the Rural Schools Association Summer Conference Focuses on Rural Educator Workforce
On July 13, NYKids Assistant Director Aaron Leo traveled to scenic Lake Placid, New York to present findings from our latest study on positive outlier elementary schools at the Rural Schools Association of New York State’s Summer Conference.
The theme of this summer’s conference was Our Roots, Our Rise: Honoring Our Legacy. Growing Stronger Together, a slogan which “celebrates the deep foundations of our rural schools while looking ahead to the exciting possibilities” in rural education.
NYKids Research on Rural Educator Retention and Recruitment
We were thrilled to contribute findings from our latest research study to this important conference on rural education. Focusing on the line of inquiry in our study related to educator recruitment and retention, our presentation drew on data from two of our positive outlier rural schools: Kendall Elementary and Poland Elementary.
The presentation slides are available on our website – but we want to share a few highlights with you:
- School districts throughout New York State and the country are facing workforce shortages
- Rural school systems face unique challenges such as: geographic isolation, smaller labor pool, and limited resources which can mean lower pay and professional isolation
- Yet rural schools can also attract candidates with smaller class sizes and strong connections to the community
Our findings provide insights into how rural districts can attract high-quality candidates and keep them
- Rural positive outlier schools recruit candidates through a range of mechanisms and also rely on word of mouth and a strong reputation
- Prospective teachers are attracted to these schools because of the small class sizes and manageable behavioral challenges
- Leaders at positive outliers support their new teachers with additional mentoring and consistency to avoid burnout and turnover
- Strong relationships with staff and families are another reason why educators at these positive outlier schools stay
See the entire presentation here for more details on rural school recruitment and retention!
Thank you for your interest in NYKids! We will continue releasing case studies from our latest study this summer, so be sure to connect with us on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, and Bluesky!
You can learn more about NYKids website or contact the research team at nykids@albany.edu.
