Philly still needs hundreds of teachers and support staff before school starts Aug. 26

The Philadelphia School District needs to hire hundreds of teachers, climate staff and other crucial educational employees before classes start Aug. 26.

The school system is slightly off its pace of hiring teachers, principals and assistant principals compared with last year.

According to district data, the school system had filled 93% of its teaching jobs by July 12, the last date for which numbers are available. That’s down slightly from a 94% “fill rate” at the same time last year.

The district declined to release the actual number of vacant positions, but according to the National Center for Education Statistics, the school system employed 8,143 teachers last school year. If the number of teachers is roughly the same for the 2024-25 school year, that means the district would still need to hire more than 500 teachers.

“It is our priority to ensure that all schools are staffed with excellent, diverse teachers,” said Kaylan Connally, the district’s chief of talent.

Principal positions were 96% filled as of Thursday, compared with 97% at the same time last year, and 92% of assistant principal jobs were filled, compared with 98% at this time last year.

The district plans its next in-person hiring fair for teachers on Aug. 5 at its headquarters on North Broad Street.

On a steamy Wednesday recently, the district focused on filling 1,000 open jobs for bus drivers, cleaners, nurses, special education assistants, climate workers, bilingual counseling assistants and building engineers, hosting candidates at Willard Elementary in Kensington.

A DJ pumped music into the school hallways as district employees in “Now Hiring” T-shirts handed out water bottles and stress balls and directed candidates to rooms where they could fill out paperwork, take exams and ask questions about the positions.

Connally said the district is in better shape this year than it was last year at the same time in terms of hiring support staff.

The biggest area of need is special education assistants, who work one-on-one with students with special needs, or small groups of such students, Connally said — the district has about 700 open positions in that job category.

Connally touted job perks including summers off and a program that pays paraprofessionals to earn college credits and eventually become special education teachers.

“There’s a lot of room to move up, to build your career with the school district, as well, and you’re giving back to the community,” said Connally. “We’re very invested in our people and growing talent.”

Renita Cobb currently works as a student climate staffer, ensuring order in the hallways at Clemente Middle School in North Philadelphia. She came to Willard hoping to move into a different role as a special education assistant.

Cobb, 52, said she’s well suited to the work, that teachers sometimes send students to her to calm down. She thinks she can have a greater impact as a special education assistant working directly with students in need.

“My principal already has an offer letter for me,” said Cobb. “I’m nervous, but I’m excited.”

Shayvonna Jackson and Jahnay Johnson came to the Willard hiring event together. They both already have similar jobs, working as aides at a school in Chester County, and came hoping to get work as special education assistants.

Jackson and Johnson said they were particularly interested in the jobs because they currently lack benefits in their Chester County roles. Philadelphia provides health benefits, and pays $15.95 an hour.

Given their experience, a Philadelphia hiring manager offered Jackson and Johnson jobs on the spot.

“It’s a great place to work,” Amber Minor-Tisdale, a district recruitment and selection specialist, told the pair. “The position starts Aug. 20. We pay for your physicals, fingerprints, TB tests, and once you do that, you’ll pick your school.”

Another hiring fair for school support positions is scheduled for July 24 at Fels High School in the Northeast.