“They Actively Poach My Teachers": From Competition for Jobs to Teachers as "Free Agents"

• In Event: Leadership Perspectives on Teacher Retention, Agency, and Intentions

Abstract

Schools and school districts across the country are being increasingly and alarmingly impacted by staffing shortages (Barnum, 2023). While various studies document the rates of turnover along with its causes and effects, there is comparatively little research on responses that schools and districts have adopted to deal with turnover and staffing shortages. This study draws on resource dependency theory and 52 interviews with district and school-based leaders across the state of Michigan to investigate the phenomena of "teacher poaching" as a leadership response that surfaced numerous technical and ethical responses, ultimately impacting low-income districts/schools in the most adverse ways.

Author

• Chris Torres, University of Michigan