 "Photo: Marcie Heacox/Poly Post")
Few jobseekers attended the Cal Poly Pomona Teacher Job Fair, which took place Thursday in the Bronco Student Center’s Ursa Major.
Those who attended the event participated in on-the-spot interviews with the 25 employers in attendance. This contrasts with the 50 who were in attendance at last year’s fair. Numerous vendors were hiring for science, math and special education instructors.
What this means for job seekers is fewer open opportunities in other fields for teachers in the local areas. The decrease in vendors and students was on everyone’s mind who were involved in the event.
Career Center Event Organizer Veronica Moy prepared for a small turnout in advance.
With the recent distribution of pink slips to over thousands of Los Angeles teachers, Moy expected a lower number of vendors to attend. In response to the expected low turnout, non- profit organizations and other educational institutions were invited to attend she said.
Veteran representatives such as Alan Kay from the San Bernardino School District also noticed the small number of employers in attendance compared to his past three years at the fair. Unlike previous years, most of the vendors in attendance were local to the area according to Kay.
Students in attendance expressed successes in talking to the different schools, yet they still remained concerned about their future in teaching.
Steven Ryther is a third-year English student who voiced concern over the current situation in education.
“They’ve laid off so many teachers recently that it’s hard to find a teaching job,” said Ryther.
Recent layoffs in California have left schools with less teachers, crowded classrooms and many future teachers questioning their career. Last month, over 26,000 teachers were handed pink slips according to Msnbc.com. With the experienced teachers entering the competition for the few open education positions, the number of hopefuls has decreased.
According to the Liberal Studies Department Chair Stephen Bryant, teaching hopefuls have decreased over the past few years.
“In Liberal Studies, our number of majors has dropped from approximately 925 to 600 over the past few years,” he said.
Bryant also said that most school districts are currently looking for special education, math and science teachers. This has caused many students to change their focus to these subjects.
Bryant also mentioned retirement as another concern that could hit schools in the near future.
“If these retirements happen in large numbers over few years, it will be hard to staff California schools, as it takes a minimum of approximately five years to educate a teacher.”
Reach Melissa Fowler at news@thepolypost.com
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