Diana Wittenberg thought she had her post-graduation plans figured out: She’d move back to Chicago to be close to her family and teach in either the city or suburbs.
Last August, that plan seemed reasonable. Now, it’s out the window.
As districts hand pink slips to teachers across the state, Wittenberg, a senior at Illinois State University, is applying for jobs in Texas and South Carolina because she said that school districts there are hungry for teachers.
“I haven’t even applied in Illinois,” said Wittenberg, 22. “I really don’t know what the point is.”
Wittenberg is one of thousands of Illinois students getting ready to graduate with a degree in education. She and other beginning teachers face a discouraging situation: Leave the state in hopes of finding a job or stick it out and compete with experienced, recently laid-off educators.
Some Illinois universities are telling their students that it will be difficult finding jobs in the Chicago area, given the state’s budget crisis. Those that think they can easily get jobs in their hometowns are likely to be disappointed, officials said.
“In my experience, they all think, ‘But that won’t be me,'” said Deborah Curtis, dean of ISU’s College of Education. “Many students are convinced that they’re going to go back home to the suburbs [to teach], but they’re going to have to learn to make some adjustments.”
On average, 84 percent of the university’s education graduates typically stay in Illinois to teach, Curtis said. But the economic realities are different this year.
School districts plan to cut roughly 14,600 teacher and administrator jobs this spring through layoffs and retirees not being replaced, said Brent Clark, executive director of the Illinois Association of School Administrators. The data are based on a survey conducted in mid-April.
Meanwhile, the state expects to certify roughly the same number of new teachers as in previous years. More than 17,000 people were newly certified in the year ending June 30, 2008, according to the most recent data from the Illinois State Board of Education.
Most school district officials said they won’t make final decisions about hiring until the state legislature passes a budget. Lawmakers adjourned Friday without approving one. Democratic leaders promised to finish by month’s end.
Wittenberg, a Palatine native, said she will apply to the Hoffman Estates elementary school where she is student-teaching, but doesn’t expect to be hired. School District 54 is in the process of cutting 112.5 positions, including 39 teachers, according to spokeswoman Terri McHugh.
In the meantime, Wittenberg tells herself she has until August to find something — anything — in education.
But not all students are giving up on Illinois just yet.
Even though Britta Jepsen, a senior at DePaul University, knows the economic climate isn’t the best for beginning teachers, she is still only applying to districts in-state. The 22-year-old wants to stay close to her family and is planning her wedding for next summer in Chicago.
“I’ve never thought about teaching anywhere but in Illinois,” said Jepsen, of Western Springs. “I’m getting married here. I want to start a family here.”
She isn’t overly nervous about competing against veterans for open positions, either. She would be a less expensive staff member and has fresh ideas to bring to a school, she said.
So far, she has sent out 20 applications to districts in Will, Lake, Cook, and DuPage counties. She expects to hand in dozens more.
But many school district officials are pessimistic about hiring new teachers this summer. If they’re going to hire teachers, they’ll start with those they just laid off.
“We’ve got to get these guys that were in the work force back,” said Nancy Valenta, assistant superintendent of human resources at Indian Prairie School District 204, which serves parts of Naperville and Aurora and recently let go 145 teachers.
The sentiment was echoed by officials at West Aurora School District 129, which laid off 127 teachers in March.
“The big unknown factor is the state budget,” said Mike Chapin, West Aurora’s community relations director. “We’ll hire a lot of those teachers [back] if the state funds schools like it did last year.”
Students who stand the best chance in the Illinois teaching market are those with certifications in special education, bilingual education or math and science endorsements, officials said. These areas have been consistently undersupplied, according to data from the State Board of Education.
Jill Bisluk, a DePaul graduate student, said she couldn’t think of leaving her tightknit family in Elmwood Park. She said she believes that her experience working with special education students gives her an edge.
Still, she’s nervous. Not only does she wonder if she’ll find a job, she worries that graduating with a master’s degree puts her at a disadvantage.
“Are they going to be picking someone with a bachelor’s degree over a master’s because it will be less pay?” the 28-year-old said. “There are all these [worries] that go through my head.”
Bisluk said most of the schools she has looked at are not hiring or only want substitute teachers.
As graduation looms, university officials said they are encouraging students to consider substitute teaching and teacher’s aide positions to get their foot in the door.
“Right now the focus is, ‘I need a job and I will take anything to get experience,'” said Gail Purkey, spokeswoman for the Illinois Federation of Teachers.
Some beginning teachers like Jepsen and Wittenberg said they would consider taking these positions if they couldn’t find anything else.
All they can plan on now is waiting.
“My parents thought I could find a job here,” Wittenberg said. “I think they’re slowly coming to the realization I might go.”
