Fulton School System Wants to Hire New Teachers

This holiday season, Fulton County Schools is giving the gift of future employment through its Fall Career Fair & Interview Day for new teachers on Dec. 3.

Although most new hires will not begin until the 2015-16 school year, Fulton County Schools is already focusing on assessing potential candidates for future positions.

Special education, foreign language, elementary education, math, science ESOL, art and music are among the top areas being recruited. Applicants should bring copies of their resume, teaching certificate, and/or GACE scores. Interviews will be conducted on the spot for current 2014-15 vacancies.

Applicants will hear about the FCS culture and the increased focus on teacher quality through a panel discussion with teachers and leaders. Other break-out sessions will be geared towards growth and development opportunities, alternative pathways to becoming a teacher, and Fulton’s high expectations for everyone – students, teachers, and parents.

On average, Fulton County Schools receives about 8,000 applications each year. While the quantity is obvious; the quality of applicants is sometimes harder to determine. As a result, the district’s Talent Department partnered with The New Teacher Project to develop a new Teacher Selection Model to measure potential teacher effectiveness through a more rigorous selection process.

The new selection process, which launched last April and was funded by a Belk Family Foundation grant, already has netted the Georgia Association for School Personnel Administrators (GASPA) Best in Class - Platinum Award for the positive way it is changing the recruitment and hiring landscape. It puts Fulton applicants through a more in-depth pre-screening before they land in the pool of candidates for principals’ consideration, which is different from most school systems.

“It’s more difficult to get a job in Fulton County Schools and that’s deliberate,” said Superintendent Robert Avossa. “Teacher quality is something being discussed nationally, and we want to make sure we are putting the best teachers in our classrooms. This means a little more work for the applicant on the front end, but once you’re among our ranks, we promise you more growth and opportunity throughout your career. We want you to be a part of our team long-term.”

The Fulton Fall Career Fair & Interview Day will be held from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Georgia International Convention Center at 2000 Convention Center Concourse in Atlanta, with registration beginning at 9 a.m.

To attend, teaching candidates are asked to pre-register online.

Photo credit: Shutterstock