Teachers leaving jobs behind is a problem in GA. What’s driving them away from Macon?
A worryingly nationwide wave of public school teachers fleeing from their classrooms did not miss its mark on the Peach State.
While teacher and school leadership roles in Georgia public schools have slightly increased each year since 2018, teacher shortages remain a problem, according to Shuyang Wang, a policy and research analyst with the Governor’s Office of Student Achievement.
Georgia lawmakers sat down earlier this month, determined to improve the state’s educator pipeline by identifying stronger ways to recruit and retain teachers.
It’s the same long-standing issue that other school districts, including the Bibb County School District, are working to address.
According to the most recent Georgia Department of Education data, 1,242 of the 1,537 Bibb County teachers who worked in October 2023 returned to teach in October 2024.
At 81%, Bibb County Schools has the fourth-highest teacher retention rate of the eight school districts in the Middle Georgia Regional Educational Service Agency this year.
A breakdown of the district’s retention rate in the past four years reveals that its ability to keep teachers fluctuates, with 2020 and 2023 having the lowest retention rates.
Data also shows that the district’s retention rate lags behind the statewide, P-20 area, and the Middle Georgia Regional Educational Service Agency rates.
Bibb County Schools approved staff wage increases in May and a millage rate in September to boost the district’s budget — all in the hopes of becoming a competitive employer and retaining high-quality teachers in the area.
“We know that we need to attract and retain the best educators for our community’s most precious asset: the children of Bibb County,” Superintendent Dan Sims said in a two-minute informative video in September.
One important factor is that the retention data covers teachers returning as teachers, said GADOE spokesperson Meghan Frick.
“If a teacher returns to the district but in a non-teacher position (like an assistant principal), the retention numbers in this dataset consider that person not retained,” Frick said in an email.
What’s driving away teachers from Macon?
In May 2024, the Professional Association of Georgia Educators surveyed 3,700 educators from school districts across the state, with 47% of them reporting they felt burned out.
Only 21% of them said they’d recommend entering the education field right now.
“This is not a large number. It’s a very troubling number,” Claire Suggs, PAGE senior education policy analyst, said at the Senate committee meeting. She said the organization’s data only captures the teachers who have decided to stay in the education field.
Out of the 1,537 Bibb County teachers in October 2023, 249 were reported as departing the district by October 2024, according to GADOE data.
So, what’s eroding Macon teachers’ commitment to staying in the classroom?
Former teachers in Bibb County Schools have told The Telegraph that the district has one of the lowest-paying teacher salaries in the Middle Georgia area, leading educators to seek better pay in nearby districts like Houston County that have more resources.
A breakdown of the school district’s attrition rate over the last four years reveals that the top three reasons for teachers leaving were resignation, acceptance of a position in another Georgia school system and family issues, which includes personal illnesses.
GOSA researchers also found that high-poverty schools face lower teacher retention rates, with experienced teachers more likely to stay in low-poverty areas and Black teachers more likely to work in higher concentrations of students from low-income households.
Over 600 public school students in Macon-Bibb are homeless, with recent data from the United Way indicating 22% of households in the city live below the federal poverty line and an additional 35% live from paycheck to paycheck.
Other reasons educators quit include underlying pressures, such as student behavior, financial and living cost struggles, having to take on extra responsibilities at school, student loan debt and finding better opportunities at other school districts, Suggs said.
In August, Bibb County Schools Board President James Freeman highlighted neighboring Central Georgia districts losing teachers to Houston County, which he said has a 1% sales tax that can go to its teachers’ salaries.
“By law, (Bibb County) cannot do that. So, we’re trying to compete against somebody that’s playing a different field basically,” Freeman said before mentioning a fear of BCSD losing high-quality teachers.
Teacher retention in Macon charter schools, Central GA
The following percentages show 2024 teacher retention rates for public school districts in the Middle Georgia Regional Educational Service Agency and state charter schools located in Macon-Bibb, according to data from the GADOE.
Crawford County: 76%
Bibb County: 81%
Houston County: 88%
Jasper County: 79%
Jones County: 86%
Monroe County: 88%
Peach County: 73%
Twiggs County: 68%
Academy for Classical Education: 92%
Cirrus Charter Academy: 67%