Pending brain drain as 25 percent of city teachers contemplate leaving within three years

More than 32,000 teachers walked away from jobs in New York City classrooms in the last 11 years, with a substantial number — more than one in eight — leaving for jobs in nearby suburban systems that have higher pay, lower class sizes and better teaching conditions.

In a particularly troubling trend, despite the effects of the local and national recession, resignations among mid-career teachers (6-15 years of experience) nearly doubled between 2008 and 2013.

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And even as suburban recruitment of New York City teachers is increasing, a recent UFT survey showed that more than 25 percent of UFT members are thinking about leaving within the next three years for other systems or other professions.

UFT President Michael Mulgrew said, "Critics keep saying that New York City cannot afford to treat its teachers and students fairly. But the real question is this — can we afford not to?”

"If New York is serious about having a first-class school system, it has got to find a way to slow the loss of veteran teachers, particularly to the suburban areas that manage to pay their staff fairly and keep class sizes down," Mulgrew said. “Research shows that veteran teachers, who have spent years honing their craft, are particularly effective at helping students learn.”

A recent random telephone and email survey of UFT members, including mid-career teachers, showed that of the 25 percent of those surveyed who were contemplating leaving within the next three years, most expected to find teaching jobs outside the five boroughs. The remainder said they were planning to change careers. (These survey numbers do not include teachers planning to retire.)

Suburban recruitment

The UFT used city and state dues records to identify teachers who at one point taught in the five boroughs and are now working elsewhere in the state.

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According to this data, more than 4,600 teachers left New York City to work in schools elsewhere in New York State from 2002 to 2012. Annual recruitment dropped off dramatically in 2008 and is now beginning to recover, with nearly 200 in the last year alone.

Nearby suburbs offer better conditions

Most of the 4,600 who left for teaching jobs elsewhere in the state ended up in nearby counties — Nassau (1,444 former NYC teachers), Suffolk (730), Westchester (1,442) and Rockland/Orange (516) — where teacher salaries are substantially higher and class sizes are smaller than in New York City. Most teachers who leave for the suburbs also cite an improvement in conditions, including more availability of supplies, and schools that are newer and in better repair.

Together these suburban counties — with nearly 60,000 total teaching positions — represent a labor market for educators nearly the size of New York City’s 75,000 teaching force.

Yonkers, one of the largest systems in the state outside New York City, hired 164 former New York City teachers over the 10-year period, while other Westchester systems with large numbers of city veterans include Scarsdale, Harrison and White Plains; East Ramapo and Clarkstown in Rockland County had a total of 135 such city veterans; Nassau/Suffolk systems with large numbers of former city teachers included Great Neck (101), Uniondale (67), Valley Stream (63) and Half Hollow Hills (50).

Higher salaries, smaller classes

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Mid-career teacher salaries in such districts can range from $10,000 to nearly $20,000 more than New York City. Top teacher salaries can run from $15,000 to $25,000 or more over New York City levels. The salary discrepancies are true for both high-poverty/high-needs districts like Hempstead and East Ramapo, and for more affluent school systems like Great Neck and Half Hollow Hills.

The poverty level for New York City students, based on the number of students eligible for free and reduced-price lunch, is 78 percent. The poverty index for East Ramapo and Hempstead is 78-84 percent; Great Neck and Half Hollow Hills have far lower poverty rates — 10-11 percent.

While the poverty rates may vary significantly, all of these suburban districts have substantially lower class sizes than New York City.  The average class size in New York City in the elementary grades is more than 26 students — roughly 15 percent more than in Westchester and Rockland Counties. For example, 3^rd-grade class size in New York City averages at 26 while in New Rochelle it is 23 and Great Neck 19.