Welcome Back
Welcome back to our students and staff. We look forward to our continued work together to finish out the 2024-2025 school year in a blaze of glory.
As we have returned for the spring semester, we have a lot of work to do to continue progress as a school district. I would like to shed light on a few topics that have been areas of discussion.2
USD 480’s Recruiting Avenues:
One aspect of KESA 2.0 that takes effect in 2027 is that 95% of Core Teachers will have to be licensed by the state of Kansas or the district’s accreditation can potentially be impacted. Thanks to the work of the staff, the district recently regained its full accreditation from the state. As we strive to maintain our accreditation, we will pursue the following paths.
Recruitment of Filipino Teachers: Due to the national teacher shortage, USD 480, along with several other area school districts, have voted to fill some of our certified teacher vacancies through a program that trains and brings teachers from the Philippines to teach in Kansas. The employment of these 20 teachers is being done in order to fill vacancies that are part of our yearly attrition (retirements and staff relocation). Building leaders will be part of this process and will identify their vacancies to set up interviews. In addition to these teachers, the district also offers signing bonuses to starting teachers.
Interims: Interim teachers are also a part of our staffing plan that helps meet our accreditation goals. We currently have 118 interim teachers, with 70 of them on a plan of study who are working toward their degrees and certification. Of these 70, 25 are on track to be licensed by the end of 2025. The district will continue to assist those on a plan of study and will continue to hire interims where necessary. We appreciate your work with our students and staff.
Lastly, we will continue to recruit licensed staff who graduate from colleges and universities as well as those who come from other districts. Another deal sweetener for recruits is that USD 480 offers one of the area's highest starting salaries, $50,000 a year for certified teachers. Furthermore, once they are hired, they can receive up to $5,000 in bonuses over their first three years. The bonuses will be spread over three years to encourage them to stay with USD 480. All of this is designed to find talent that will call Liberal home.
