Lee County slashed teacher vacancies. But can it keep them?
The School District of Lee County has slashed its teacher vacancies from 211 in January to 31, part of an aggressive four-month recruitment effort. Officials are now looking to fill every open instructional role before the first day of the new school year.
But behind the recruitment win lies a deeper challenge:
“We are losing teachers faster than we can hire them,” said Shanna Johnston, the district’s executive director of Human Resources at a recent school board workshop.
District leaders say teacher retention has become their top priority, even as they prepare to open five new schools requiring 300 more instructors in the coming years.
Calls for teacher fair pay intensify
Dozens of teachers and community members packed the school board workshop and action meeting May 6, delivering a clear message: Poor pay and difficult working conditions are driving educators out of classrooms.
Susan Delago, a longtime district employee, questioned why teachers are asked to work more, like extended school days, without additional pay. “Why should teachers be different?” she asked.
Christina Chuderski, a teacher of 23 years, shared that despite her tenure, her salary remains $4,600 below the listed midpoint. “I was only offered a 3% cost of living adjustment,” she said, citing data showing the district overbudgeted teacher salaries by nearly $38 million annually over the past decade. She called on the board to provide “fair pay.”
Lisa Taylor, in her 17th year teaching, said she felt disrespected during contract negotiations. When district negotiators cited a tenured teacher earning $65,000, "We chuckled because tenured teachers don’t make $65,000,” she said. "Take a hard look at the facts.”
Charla Fox, with 24 years of experience, said she once left teaching for 15 years because she could not afford to stay. She urged the board to act on the superintendent’s goal of making salaries competitive. "If we want to be a world-class school system, you have to be willing to invest in our people,” she said, noting many teachers work second or third jobs.
Michael Bourbina, a teacher working a second job at Regal Cinemas, said he regularly donates plasma to make ends meet. "I couldn’t make it otherwise,” he said.
Latonya Starks, an educator and union member, said roughly 836 emails demanding better pay had been sent to the district over the weekend. "We’re not asking for handouts,” she said. "We are asking for respect in the form of fair pay.”
Beyond compensation, teachers cited issues like workload stress, lack of administrative support, academic freedom concerns and involuntary assignment changes as reasons for leaving.
Retention by the numbers: Behind the turnover crisis
The district hired 197 teachers between August 2024 and May 2025 but lost 253 during the same period.
Teacher retention increased slightly to 84.4% this school year, from 83.8% the previous year. Still, that falls short of the national average of 87% and is behind several neighboring districts. The district’s strategic goal is to improve retention by 1% annually for the next four years.
But some board members questioned whether that goal was enough.
"Moving the needle 1% a year is not going to get this thing fixed,” said board member Bill Ribble. "We got to really start thinking a little differently.”
Deputy Superintendent Kenneth Savage agreed. "The 1% a year is not going to cut it, so we really have our work cut out for us,” he said. "We really have to focus on the high-impact recruitment and retention strategies.”
How is the district responding?
In response to the crisis, the district unveiled a new Organizational Development and Retention department within Human Resources. The office will address areas like leadership development, career pathways, staff culture and employee engagement, spanning all employee groups, not just teachers.
The district's strategies include:
- Compensation and benefits
- Leadership development
- Data-driven feedback
- Career pathways and succession planning
- Recognition and staff daycare
- Filling specialized roles
- Building a local talent pipeline
- Advocating for policy change
Employee surveys on culture, safety and turnover are being used to guide school-level improvement plans.
"What gets measured gets results,” said Ribble, proposing a system that tracks why staff leave each school.
To reduce long-term hiring pressure, the district also hopes to inspire local graduates to become teachers, paraprofessionals or substitute instructors through career outreach programs.
What comes next?
Board members expressed both support and concern. Board member Melissa Giovanelli backed the daycare expansion but emphasized that Lee County must offer better local pay before seeking national candidates.
"I don’t think that we’re in a place to do that. That’s my concern,” she said.
While the district’s recruitment numbers show clear progress, its broader staffing crisis remains unresolved. Teachers say the fixes must start with pay and soon.
"If we want a world-class education system,” Fox told the board, "we have to be willing to invest in our people.”
Mickenzie Hannon is a watchdog reporter for The News-Press and Naples Daily News, covering Collier and Lee counties. Contact her at 239-435-3423 or mhannon@gannett.com.