CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Teacher turnover is forcing school districts around the country to get creative when it comes to attracting new teachers and incentivizing them to stay.
Sixth grade math teacher for William Adams Middle School, Maria Ibanez, said Alice ISD has become her family. Before turning to a career in education, she worked with children in a different way.
“Before this, I was a CPS worker," she said. "And I wanted to help the children before. I was the investigator, I would investigate. So before we go and remove them.”
But 15 years ago, she decided she would rather help kids thrive in a different way and came to work at William Adams Middle School.
“I’ve been working with some of these teachers for my entire career," Ibanez said.
That type of dedication inspires Alice ISD's new superintendent Anysia Trevino.
“If they’ve been in the business 10, 15 years, they’re in the business because they love it,” she said.
Trevino says teachers like Ibanez bring so much value to the district.
“Because they have experiences, they already know the curriculum, and we don’t have to worry about retraining them,” Trevino said.
But finding teachers has become difficult for many school districts.
“Not an easy task when everyone is searching for teachers," Trevino said. “We have about 10, 15 vacancies that still need to be filled for the upcoming school year.”
The district is incentivizing new teachers by offering a starting salary of $53,500.
William Adams Middle School Principal Cidonio Cantu says none of those openings are at his school.
“They drive from Corpus, Calallen to come and teach at our school,” he said.
And Ibanez says the family atmosphere is a big reason why.
“Five years ago, my dad passed away and my colleagues just took over," Ibanez said. "I stepped back into the classroom, and it was like I hadn’t been gone.”
Knowing her students were taken care of meant everything to her.
“I’ve built so many relationships with my children, my students.”
Cantu is hoping the new school year will produce more teachers like Maria Ibanez for years to come.
“I’m excited to start the new year with our students, I can’t wait to see them back,” he said.