GSA Daily Staff Report
Published Dec. 23, 2010

The number of teaching positions in South Carolina decreased 4.2% this year, the second straight yearly decline, according to a report released Wednesday by the Center for Educator Recruitment, Retention, and Advancement, or CERRA.

In the annual Teacher/Administrator Supply and Demand Survey for the 2010-2011 school year, districts reported 48,744 allocated teacher slots, a decrease of 2,145 positions from last school year and 3,676 from the 2008-2009 school year.

The largest proportion, 45%, of all eliminated teacher slots was in the primary/elementary schools. Reductions at the high school level accounted for 38% of positions lost, and of those, more than half were in English and mathematics combined. And 21% of all unfunded positions reported for this school year were attributable to reductions in middle schools.

CERRA, a teacher recruitment organization located at Winthrop University, suggested recruitment efforts focus on middle and high school teachers certified in special education, mathematics, science and English/language arts.

“Over the past several years district administrators have consistently communicated the extraordinary intricacies of predicting human capital and the best, most efficient use of available resources as funding for education continues to decrease,” said Gayle Sawyer, CERRA executive director. “As national data have become available, we have noted that South Carolina’s figures reflect distressing national hiring trends.”

Much like last year, districts continue to eliminate positions and programs to account for funding shortages. The total number of teachers hired in South Carolina’s public school districts and special schools this year was 3,514, approximately 105 fewer hires compared to last school year and the lowest number of teachers hired since 2001 when CERRA began conducting the annual Teacher/Administrator Supply and Demand Survey.

Districts reported 189 vacant teacher positions at the beginning of the 2010-2011 school year, which is a reduction of just 14 vacancies compared to last year. While high schools held the largest share, 42.7%, of unfilled teacher positions this school year, the actual number of vacancies at the high school level dropped by 26%.