LAKEWOOD, Colo. – Teachers with the Jeffco Public Schools spent part of their Saturday interviewing for new jobs.
The district hosted a job fair at Carmody Middle School for teachers and staff members from the 16 elementary schools that are closing at the end of this school year due to low enrollment.
Jenifer Jones, Chief Human Resources Officer for Jeffco Public Schools, says more than 140 teachers were scheduled to interview for more than 300 open positions within the district.
“We really know how much our teachers are of value to us at Jeffco. We want to do everything we can to retain them,” said Jones. “And so, this is a very special event. We've not done anything like this before.”
Teachers were able to select the schools they wanted to interview with at the job fair.
“Most of them are interviewing at five different schools. They get their interview schedule, and they do 15-minute meet and greets,” said Jones. “And then, offers will be made to teachers next Monday and Tuesday.”
It’s a sensitive time for these teachers who are facing an uncertain future.
Many teachers at the job fair didn’t want Denver7 to show their faces.
“I think it’s been a rollercoaster of emotions for our community, for our students, for our staff, for myself,” said Michael Zweifel, the principal at New Classical Academy at Vivian, one of the elementary schools closing.
Zweifel says her teachers and staff members are doing their best to confront a new reality.
“It’s very difficult,” said Zweifel. “They love their communities. They love their colleagues. They love the school that they serve and the students that they’re with each and every day.”
Zweifel was part of another school closure once and knows the challenges.
That’s why the district selected her to help teachers and staff transition.
She’s also helping them prepare for the job market including the interviews at the job fair.
“We’ve been doing a lot of resume writing, looking at cover letters. We've done interview skills, interview practice to get them ready,” said Zweifel. “We’ve also really been focusing on their well-being and making sure that they’re getting the extra care and love that they need, especially this week as we entered into a really hard week of interviewing.”
Teachers and staff members who are hired will start their new jobs at their new schools next school year.
District leaders say while they want to keep as many teachers in the district as possible, they’re also working to help some find opportunities in other districts.
“I have been in touch with other chief human resources officers who are in the surrounding school districts,” said Jones. “We're also sharing information with them so that they can reach out to other school districts, but we really want to retain the very best of Jeffco.”
Jones said the district will continue working with teachers who aren’t offered a position after the job fair.
“We’ll continue to work with them over the course of the next several months to hopefully be able to help them find roles within the district,” said Jones.
In November, the Jeffco Public Schools Board voted to close 16 elementary schools through consolidation due to declining enrollment, which the district blamed on lagging birth rates and unaffordable housing.
The schools that would be closed, and the schools they would consolidate with, are as follows:
- Alameda Emory → Lasley (Emory Center Program → Rose Stein)
- Arvada: Peck → Secrest
- Arvada: Thomson → Swanson (Thomson Center Program → Hackberry Hill if needed)
- Arvada West: Campbell → Fremont, Campbell → Vanderhoof (Campbell Center Program → Vanderhoof)
- Bear Creek: Peiffer → Kendallvue
- Dakota Ridge: Colorow → Powderhorn
- Green Mountain: Green Mountain ES → Foothills (Green Mountain Center Program → Belmar)
- Evergreen: 2024-25 Bergen Meadow K-2 → Bergen Valley will become PK-5
- Jefferson: Molholm → Lumberg
- Lakewood: Glennon Heights → Belmar (Glennon Center Program → Hutchinson)
- Pomona: Parr → Little
- Standley Lake: Sheridan Green → Ryan
- Standley Lake: Witt → Lukas
- Wheat Ridge: Vivian → Stober (Vivian Center Program → Maple Grove)
- Wheat Ridge: Wilmore Davis → Stevens
- Wheat Ridge: Kullerstrand → Prospect Valley
