About 16 percent of teachers in Nome turn over every decade. In the Bering Strait School District (BSSD), the turnover rate is even higher: 28 percent.
According to Nome Superintendent Shawn Arnold, part of the problem is that so few rural educators are homegrown.
“A disproportionate number of teachers trained outside Alaska are hired to teach in Alaska’s rural schools,” he said. “These are the teachers coming up from the Lower 48. Many are new to the teaching profession, they’re just starting out their careers, and they’re unprepared for the cultural competence for living in a rural Alaska Native village.”
That’s why Nome Public Schools is helping to restart the Future Educators of Alaska. The program died five years ago, due to lack of funding, but the University of Alaska Fairbanks is bringing it back with a new federal grant. Read the full article here.
Source: KNOM Radio Mission
UA Workforce Development News 