Increasing Capacity After COVID: A Multiple-Case Study of District Efforts

• In Event: School Staffing Challenges Through the Pandemic

Abstract

With pronounced health and racial inequity crises since 2019, districts have faced incredible challenges that negatively impact their ability to operate (e.g., turnover, shortages) and their educator workforce has suffered from unsustainable amounts of stress and mental health challenges (GAO, 2022; Renbarger & Rodler, 2023). As districts look to address these issues, many created new positions and turned to families and community organizations for support.
In alignment with the AERA call to “construct educational possibilities,” the purpose of this presentation is to document how districts have systemically created new educational systems and expanded community involvement to build broader capacity. We use the Equitable Community-School Collaboration framework (Ishimaru, 2019) to highlight collaborative, reciprocal, and relational capacity-building strategies rather than traditional, one-way engagement strategies. Results from this presentation include opportunities for districts to share important responsibilities with groups besides teachers to widen the workforce and meet all students’ educational needs.
Method

A multiple case study methodology was used to understand district efforts to engage family and community members in improving student outcomes. District information is provided in Table 1. This study used semi-structured interviews with district administrators, teachers, family members, students, and representatives from local community organizations. All interviews were coded to a set of four a priori thematic codes highlighting key challenges identified during screening interviews.

Results
Districts prioritized district staffing, resource centers, and community member involvement as ways to alleviate teacher burnout. Some examples are presented below with more in the final presentation.

All districts discussed ways to hire staff members to strengthen family community collaboration (FCC) and to mitigate teacher fatigue. To increase available resources for students and teachers, one district hired a grant-writer to identify additional funding for staff and programming. Districts also partnered with community organizations and hired more social workers to make it easier for educators to connect students with support services.

Every district highlighted the importance of having a one-stop shop wellness center to support the needs of students and families which allowed teachers to make referrals rather than having to navigate complex health systems on their own. Districts offered a welcoming space for students and families to receive physical resources (e.g., food, clothing, laundry) as well as mental health services.

Districts valued caregivers and community members, bringing them in as workforce support for teachers to sustain FCC efforts and limit teacher burnout. As a result, districts established governing bodies (e.g., advisory councils, task forces) that also provided opportunities for collaborative, representative, and equitable district support.

Conclusion
By adding new positions, programs, and community bridges, districts can ease the burdens placed on educators and bring in more perspectives. While the examples provide hope in expanding more collaborative systems, future research must be conducted to understand if these significantly address the workforce issues and what other structures are needed.

Authors

• Rachel L. Renbarger, FHI 360

• LaMicah Lindsey

• Felix Fernandez, FHI 360

• Liza Rodler, FHI 360