Board discusses staffing shortages, recruiting and retention strategies as district prepares for summer hiring
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Summary
Personnel director Harry Snyder and district leaders told the board many current vacancies are covered by contracted professionals and staffing firms. The district plans targeted summer recruitment, enhanced onboarding, stay interviews and exit‑interview analysis to improve retention.
Middletown — The board received an update Tuesday on staffing levels, retention efforts and recruiting plans as the district prepares for summer hiring.
Harry Snyder (personnel) told the board that most current vacancies are being covered by contracted providers or ESS to maintain services while the district recruits. He said one ongoing district‑covered vacancy is a multilingual/MLL teacher position being handled on an interim basis by internal staff.
Snyder and Superintendent Vasquez Matos described several recruiting strategies: statewide direct email outreach to more than 7,000 licensed candidates, continued use of job fairs (the district interviewed 18 candidates at a recent fair), and targeted outreach for STEM and specialty positions such as chemistry and bilingual educators. Snyder said the district planned a second round of interviews for an assistant principal at the high school and remained “optimistic” about filling leadership roles.
Board members pressed for more transparency from exit interviews and asked whether the board could see summarized exit‑interview data. The administration said summary spreadsheets and presentations have been provided previously and that further reports will be scheduled. Human resources staff described expanded onboarding proposals beyond HR, including building‑level orientation, weekly central‑office check‑ins for new hires and partnership with external providers to support retention.
Superintendent Vasquez Matos said the district records separations and uses exit and stay interviews to identify systemic drivers of turnover — for example, career changes, relocations and work conditions. The board discussed using pulse surveys through the year to monitor staff climate and applying retention strategies earlier in employees’ tenures.
No board action was required; the administration said it will continue summer recruitment efforts and return with additional data and a plan for consistent onboarding and retention reporting.