Katy ISD Job Fair Draws 3,000 Teacher Hopefuls, Including Some Laid Off From Other Area School Districts

Some 3,000 hopeful educators showed up at Saturday’s Katy ISD Teacher Job Fair at the Merrell Center, including a number who will be losing their jobs as a result of layoffs at other Houston area school districts.

District personnel said the crowd was the largest ever for a Katy ISD teacher job fair, attributing the large turnout in part to the recent announcement of teacher layoffs in the Fort Bend and Houston school districts.

While other districts are laying off teachers to make budgetary ends meet, ongoing growth in the Katy area continues to spur the need for additional educators.

KISD Human Resources Coordinator Andrea Tamborello said the district is still determining exactly how many new teachers it will need for the fall semester, but the working estimates is between 300 – 600.

“(The final) number depends on growth,” Tamborello said. “Growth in certain grade levels that may occur or not occur, as well as people moving or relocating.”

In recent months, a number of area school districts have announced layoffs. Houston ISD is laying off an estimated 400 employees, including at least 99 teachers. Fort Bend ISD has given the pink slip to more than 50 employees, with more expected in the upcoming weeks.

Layoffs coupled with a tight job market were the tops reasons given by many of those seeking jobs with Katy ISD. Among the job-seekers was Alice Coleman, who was recently told she would be losing her job with Fort Bend ISD.

“We are part of the Fort Bend reduction in force right now, so we have to get back out there and see what else is available,” Coleman said.

The applicants were not, however, only from Texas. The job fair also attracted a large number of out-of-state applicants like Janice Edwards from Arizona.

With a troubled economy, teachers need to be prepared to go where the jobs are, Edwards said.  

“Times are tough right now, even in education. My mom’s a teacher and it used to be that teaching was pretty recession-proof; not any more,” Edwards explained. “It’s interesting when I talk to teachers in Texas and they tell me how bad it’s getting here. Compared to a lot of other states, Texas is still a pretty good job market.”

While some applicants handed out resumes and talked to Katy ISD staffers about possible openings, some hopefuls were able to seal the deal on site, walking away with letters of intent for the upcoming school year.

While the job fair attracted a larger-than-expected crowd of candidates, the school district is still accepting applications through its website, www.katyisd.org.

The salary schedule for first-time teachers ranges from $44,000 – $46,400 a year, depending on the level of education. An experienced teacher with a doctorate can make as much as $72,576 under the schedule.