Nearly 60 Killeen, Texas Educators Called It Quits Before Holiday Break

I’m not exactly sure what’s going on with the Killeen, Texas Independent School District. I know that my son attends school in that particular district, and I’m not impressed at all with the middle school that he goes to.

This Killeen ISD Mom Is Concerned

In my opinion, there’s no form of accountability, and I find it to be dangerous at his school to be completely honest. At the beginning of the current school year, I was concerned about classes being too crowded, and of course there have been issues with violence or threats of violence. 

Nearly 60 Killeen ISD Teachers Have Resigned or Retired

Now there's been a sort of mini-exodus in the district. Our partners at KWTX-TV report that over 70 KISD employees resigned or retired before the holiday break. Nearly 60 of those employees were teachers.

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Killeen ISD Parents Need Answers

Why have so many KISD educators quit?

According to KISD educator and teacher's union member Jennifer Lee, teacher burnout is a major factor. Teachers are under increased stress due to the pandemic, and teachers are reportedly fed up with a lack of respect and adequate compensation.

KWTX reports that it's not unusual to see some teacher resignations during the holiday season, but in my opinion, such a large number of sudden resignations is indicative of some major problems, and I wonder if and how they're being addressed.

80% of the staff who quit were teachers. What is really going on?

Moving Forward

I find it to be completely unfortunate that we have this type of shortage in the middle of a pandemic.

The bright side of this is situation is that KISD will be conducting a job fair on January 4 at the  KISD career Center, 1320 stage Coach Rd. You would need to go there between 3 PM to 7 PM if you're interested in working for the district.

"During the job fair, interested applicants will have the opportunity to interview on-site and receive conditional offers of employment," district spokeswoman Taina Maya wrote in an email earlier this month. "New hires for the 2021-2022 school year can receive a sign-on stipend of up to $1,000!"

Maya said positions are available both inside and outside of classrooms.

Meanwhile, Lee tells KWTX she's seen recent Killeen ISD graduates applying for their first teaching positions with the district, so it appears that some young KISD alumni still believe the district is worth working and fighting for.

The Situation Frustrates Me

I can’t be the only parent who feels likes this. It seems like there's always something with this school district, but you know what? We're going to try our best to remain positive going into the new year.