Dear County and District Superintendents and Charter School Administrators:

Teacher Career Fairs and Strategies to Bolster Teacher Recruitment

I am pleased to invite local educational agencies (LEAs) to join the California Department of Education (CDE) and me at upcoming teacher recruitment career fairs being hosted by the Department. I am organizing this series of teacher recruitment career fairs that are focused on outreach to the 10,000 service members who serve annually through the California Volunteer service corps. Approximately 3,000 of these service corps members are currently serving in schools as tutors or mentors.

The first teacher career fair will take place virtually on Tuesday, February 21 at 4 p.m. and is open to all 10,000 of the California Volunteer corps members. LEAs are invited to present and recruit at the career fair and to speak with participants about openings and anticipated openings. The CDE and California Volunteers will also be co-hosting mid-year leadership workshops where we will be setting up teacher recruitment tables in different regions throughout the state (see dates and locations below). LEAs interested in learning more or participating in the regional events or the February 21 virtual Teacher Career Fair should RSVP now to TeachInCA@cde.ca.gov.

I am also leading several teacher recruitment strategies to complement the career fairs. This includes producing and rolling out a “Become a Teacher” public service campaign that highlights the benefits of joining the teaching profession for career changers and for anyone who wants to become a teacher.

I have also initiated and am sponsoring legislative efforts to create a waiver to allow retired teachers to continue teaching in California classes and to provide additional scholarship supports to students who make the commitment to become teachers after graduation. I am pursuing the creation of more scholarships while using existing resources. This includes a proposal, which will be heard by the Legislature, that would expand the eligibility of the Golden State Teacher Grant so California college students could use the $20,000 grant toward blended expenses, including undergraduate degree and credential completion. At present, the grant can only be applied toward credential completion. I am also sponsoring legislative efforts to fund and expand future seats in university teacher credentialing programs.

The CDE has also launched a hotline (916‑322‑3051) and email address (TeachInCA@cde.ca.gov) that the public can use to get help navigating the complex web of resources and supports available for those interested in learning how to become a teacher. The CDE and I are maximizing existing internal resources to support enhanced coordination of resources to help LEAs and other state agencies that are charged with teacher recruitment.

In addition to the teacher career fairs for California Volunteer service members, the CDE and I will conduct outreach to classified and expanded learning staff pools and to other groups of participants who want to become teachers and would benefit from support in accessing the various available resources. You can view the press conference announcing the partnership with California Volunteers and effort to recruit teachers on the CDE Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/watch/live/?ref=watch_permalink&v=1849390822084793.

Please note the dates and locations of upcoming California Volunteer mid-year leadership workshops, where LEAs are invited to join CDE staff for recruitment tables:

• Central Valley North: Davis (Friday, February 10)
• San Diego/Irvine: San Diego (Saturday, February 11)
• Los Angeles: Los Angeles (Friday, February 24)
• Bay Area: San Francisco (Friday, March 3)
• Central Coast: San Luis Obispo (Friday, March 10)
• Central Valley South: Fresno (Saturday, March 11)
• Inland Empire: San Bernardino (Saturday, March 18)

I want to thank our incredible educators statewide and thank you in particular for your assistance and partnership in helping recruit the next generation of educators. Please contact TeachInCA@cde.ca.gov with any questions about our recruitment efforts and to share your interest in participating in our upcoming virtual and in-person teacher career fairs.

Sincerely,

Tony Thurmond
State Superintendent of Public Instruction