Clarkston Community Schools posted a job for a full-time special education teacher/secondary resource room teacher. The job was posted April 25 and will start in August 2016.
Clarkston Superintendent Rod Rock said the district received 82 online applications for the job, which has a starting salary of $38,087 for a candidate with a bachelor’s degree. Within six years, that will rise to $50,782, under the current union contract. The position also comes with health, dental, long-term disability and life insurance. Employees who don’t need the coverage (usually because they’re on a spouse’s plan) collect a payment of $1,000 to $2,000 instead.
"I am always happy that people who have a passion for teaching and making a positive difference for children apply for positions in Clarkston," Rock said in an email. "Given the number of retirements we are seeing, the stagnation of wages, the cost of health care contributions, and the salaries earned by other Michigan professionals with similar levels of education, it is likely that we will encounter challenges in attracting teachers to our district and state."
ForTheRecord says: Michigan Capitol Confidential periodically checks the level of interest in teaching as a career by reviewing random openings for K-12 teacher positions. Clarkston’s experience is not untypical. Public school teacher openings in Michigan still attract a high number of applicants.
Michigan Capitol Confidential is the news source produced by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy. Michigan Capitol Confidential reports with a free-market news perspective.