Teachers are hard to come by right now. Not only that but finding qualified teachers that are willing to travel more than 30 minutes to their school is an even greater challenge. But not for this district.
For years, teachers have voiced their concerns regarding their compensation and the cost of living in their district. This issue could not be more prevalent today as educators grapple with rising inflation. For many, living in their school district simply isn’t an option as the cost of doing so exceeds their salaries.
Recently, districts around the country have begun efforts to address this problem through various means, like getting into the landlord business and building teacher housing. One district, however, is investing heavily in teacher recruitment and retention by helping them pay the down payment on a house within the school district.
Nick Cassidy, superintendent of Holland Public Schools in Michigan, rolled out the “Teachers Live Here” program in January. The grant provides teachers with $25,000 in down payment assistance. In exchange, they must commit to at least five years of teaching within the district.
“It’s been such a blessing for us,” says Cassidy. “It came about from a community member who happened to hear the story of a teacher in Holland who started here over a decade ago, and this teacher was adamant about living in the community where she serves. They had worked with a couple of community agencies to find a home in Holland. That community member who had worked with her was sharing this story regarding housing and how it’s impacting teachers, and it was just shared with the right person at the right time and an anonymous donor and member of the community stepped and said, ‘That’s what I want for Holland.'”
According to Cassidy, the donor has committed to supporting 10 teachers per year for the next seven years at $25,000 per teacher. However, their wish is to carry on this initiative far beyond seven years. The program has been a game-changer for teachers.
“The first one, Lillian Snoeyink—who everybody saw in the initial news articles—was accepted and it drastically changed where she was looking for a house,” he says. “She put her focus back in Holland and actually found a house in Holland and closed on it here a few weeks ago, and she had stated that this probably would not have happened without this program. Now we have four others who have been approved and are looking for housing in Holland and around, and we still have spots for five more this spring that we can provide this grant to before it rolls over to another set of 10 on July 1.”
Holland as a district is only 17 square miles, according to Cassidy. However, property values are “very expensive,” forcing most teachers to buy homes 30 to 40 minutes outside of the city.
“What’s happening now, especially with the teacher shortage, after a few years a job might come open right next to their home and when they have the opportunity to take that and not drive, teachers take that,” he says. “I don’t hold any ill will toward them for doing that and taking advantage of opportunities. Our desire is to get teachers here and locked in and part of our community. We’re confident that once they do that and put down roots here they’re going to want to stay because it’s a great community.”
For both parties to truly benefit from this program, the district first had to establish eligibility requirements and how they would prioritize applicants. Cassidy notes that the goal isn’t to deny anyone from receiving this support, but the greatest needs in terms of staffing must first be met.
As outlined on the district’s website, some, but not all, of the eligibility requirements include:
- Applicants must provide most Federal Income tax returns verifying family income below $100,000.
- Once rewarded, grant dollars must be used within six months.
- The home being purchased must be within 15 miles of the HPS district boundaries.
When prioritizing applicants, special attention will be given to:
- Those who have worked in the district for at least one year with satisfactory evaluation scores.
- Those who do not currently own a home.
- Those who intend to live within the district.
- Those whose area of certification is an identified need for the district.
- Those who have completed a Homebuyer Education program.
“Those are the biggest factors right now coming in,” he says. “Part of that process is an essay that talks about their desire and the importance of living in the community where they serve.”
As far as the teacher shortage goes, he believes we will see districts around the country starting to “get creative” in the way they approach recruitment and retention because they’re all in the same boat.
“It’s impacting everybody, and unfortunately I think we’re right at the beginning of this teacher shortage,” he says. “We’re seeing fewer and fewer kids going into education programs, and as people are coming out it’s becoming more and more competitive, especially in areas of high needs. Everybody’s competing for the same things.”
Cassidy, who stepped into the superintendent position at Holland just over one year ago, says his primary focus for the rest of the school year and beyond is to build a climate and a culture that people want to serve in and feel a sense of belonging that is greater than themselves.
“I think we’re making steps in that direction right now,” he says. “Our official name is the Holland City School District. We want to make sure that we cement ourselves in the city, that we have the support from this community and that we will support them as well. If we put all those things together, it’s going to create a place that people want to work in.”
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