Numerous soon-to-be Keuka College education graduates are leaving with more than a diploma — they all have jobs waiting for them thanks to a spring Teacher Recruitment Day.
Representatives from more than a dozen school districts offered the opportunity for students to network and conduct one-on-one interviews for a variety of open positions.
“We had initially agreed to organize a Teacher Recruitment Day in 2020 with the Bath Central School District, but the pandemic had other plans and we had to cancel,” said Chair of the Division of Educational Studies Dr. Klaudia Lorinczova, who collaborated with Joseph Rumsey, Superintendent of Schools for the Bath Central School District, for the event. “This year, Mr. Rumsey returned with the idea to pool together 15 school districts represented throughout the Greater Southern Tier. Our candidates have a very good reputation and are successful in finding jobs quickly.”
One of those candidates was Morgan Fuller ’22, who was offered — and accepted — a position as a 9th grade Global History teacher at Haverling Senior High School in Bath, N.Y.
“The Keuka College Education program prepared me for supporting students in many different aspects,” said Morgan, an adolescent social studies education major.
“I learned the importance of knowing my students as individuals, how to modify my teaching to support different learners in an engaging way, and the importance of promoting a love for learning.”
Keuka College’s programs include Childhood, Early Childhood, and Adolescent Education.
Each of the schools in attendance provided overwhelmingly positive feedback and offered jobs to many of the College students. In addition to the students, several recent College alumni were in attendance and also received job offers at the event.
“I believe this was a success. The students were well prepared and impressed the administrators from the school districts,” said Mr. Rumsey in an email after the event. “We truly appreciate the quality of the Keuka College program.”
In fact, Dr. Lorinczova says the Teacher Recruitment Day was strategic.
“It is amazing that the landscape for teacher positions and the hiring process has changed so much with COVID-19 accelerating the teacher shortage,” said Dr. Lorinczova. “Now a teacher candidate has their pick of a position. It used to be that for every position, there were a heap of candidates. Now there are not enough candidates and the need for new hires in school districts is at an all-time high.”
And not just in New York State. After commencement, Grace Wolf ’22 is headed to Colorado to find a position as a lead teacher in kindergarten, first, or second grade.
In addition to student-teaching placements, Keuka College’s on-the-job Field Period® internships give students the chance to have four annual in-class experiences — giving them a huge edge when entering the job market.
“Going into my student teaching placements I was nervous, but as soon as I stepped in, I knew I was well prepared,” said Grace, an Early Childhood Education/Special Education with Family and Child Studies. “I feel confident in my knowledge and skills when teaching my students, and I look forward to having my own classroom.”
In addition, the students were able to practice interviewing for positions, which Dr. Lorinczova believes serves as experience in line with the College’s focus on experiential learning.
“There are a few students who are pursuing a graduate degree instead of full-time employment, but literally every student who wanted a job found one — or more — at the Teacher Recruitment Day,” she said. “The members of the education faculty are excited that our candidates are regarded very highly by the local school districts and look forward to other possible collaborative efforts.”
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