Following an overall decline in teacher retention in 2023, Franklin County and North Quabbin school districts saw a mix of increased and decreased retention rates in the 2023-2024 school year, according to data from the state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE).

The 2023-2024 school year data was last updated on May 2, and looks at the rates of superintendents, principals and teachers who remain working in the same position from one year to the next, broken down into individual categories. The webpage notes that when a teacher transfers between schools within the same district — such as from a middle school to a high school in that district — the teacher is considered retained.

Increased retention for some districts

Among the schools in Franklin County and the North Quabbin region, the Greenfield School Department and the Gill-Montague Regional School District saw the highest increase in teacher retention rates compared to the prior school year.

Greenfield retained 80.4% of its teaching staff, compared to a 70.5% retention rate for 2022-2023. Meanwhile, Gill-Montague saw a 90.4% retention rate for the 2023-2024 school year. By comparison, the retention rate in 2022-2023 was 77.9%. Notably, Gill-Montague was the only district in Franklin County with a higher teacher retention rate than the state average of 85.8%.

In Greenfield, the percentage of teachers retained by the district had been steadily decreasing from 87% in 2018 to 70.5% in 2023, and Gill-Montague had a 91.4% retention rate in 2018 compared to a 77.9% rate in 2023. Speaking on this decline in an interview last year, Gill-Montague Superintendent Brian Beck cited burnout as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic as a potential cause for the lack of teacher retention, which he noted as being a regional issue.

Neither Beck nor Greenfield Superintendent Karin Patenaude could be reached for comment on the most recent data.

Franklin County Technical School also saw an increase in retention, with a 2023-2024 rate of 84.7% compared to the 2022-2023 rate of 79%. Superintendent Richard Martin explained that the retention rate for Franklin Tech this year is consistent with the year-to-year retention rate. Much of the time, teachers that leave the school are retiring, rather than transferring to other districts or leaving the field, as Martin explained.

“That’s not to say some teachers don’t go on or they move or they go on to a different career, but we don’t tend to lose teachers to other school districts,” Martin said.

Martin noted that the state of teaching today is challenging, with burnout occurring for those in the profession. He added that Franklin Tech has tried to create an environment to limit this problem.

“I think one of the strong elements of our school district is that we do have a pretty inclusive and positive school culture, and I think that helps diminish the amount of burnout,” he said, adding that he attributes the ability to maintain staff as coming from the environment of the school, as well as competitive salaries for teachers. “Our salary is very competitive, which then contributes to retention of the staff.”

In Worcester County, the Athol-Royalston Regional School District has also seen an increase in retention compared to 2022-2023. Superintendent Matthew Ehrenworth explained the key factors to this, including a union-negotiated salary change, a program that provides mentorship to the newer teachers and a shift in district culture.

“I do think that through all of our belongingness training and all of our focus on supporting the staff, that message is becoming clearer, and I do think that impacts teachers wanting to stay or wanting to leave,” Ehrenworth said.

Athol-Royalston’s retention rate from the 2023-2024 school year was 81.1% compared to the 2022-2023 rate of 71.3%. Ehrenworth observed that the sharp decrease in the 2022-2023 year came from not one defining issue, but several.

“Between the COVID-19 burnout, the people realizing education wasn’t for them who came from different fields or got an emergency license and just the stress of the job,” Ehrenworth said, “I think that that’s why we had such a dip last year.”

Ehrenworth explained that the shift in culture to more outward appreciation of staff and attempting to meet their needs has contributed to a successful retention rate. In reflecting on the future of teaching in a larger sense, he said, “I can’t say that I’m entirely hopeful for the teaching profession in general, but I can say that I am very hopeful for our district.”

Teacher retention rates are ‘complicated’

Other districts in the region did see a decrease in retention in 2023-2024, while others still saw steady numbers from one year to the next. The data reflects several contributing factors, administrators say.

According to Jordan Burns, director of finance with the Pioneer Valley Regional School District, the decrease in teacher retention came from the separation of Warwick Community School from the Pioneer school district. Pioneer had a 71.4% teacher retention rate for 2023-2024 compared to 81.4% for 2022-2023.

Burns reported that the district has sought ways to increase retention and improve conditions for teachers. In April, the School Committee and teachers’ union agreed to a 15% salary increase, with wages starting at $52,000 per year. Burns noted that the response to this wage increase from teachers was positive, and he anticipates this will help with future retention.

“Long-term, we’re hoping that that will bear fruit and contribute to better retention, because being able to provide better compensation to teachers is an area we can, to some extent, control and also lead to us being able to retain the great educators we have,” Burns said.

The Ralph C. Mahar Regional School District saw a 77% retention rate for 2023-2024, a drop from the previous year’s rate of 82.2%. Mahar Superintendent Elizabeth Zielinski explained that the district has seen retention rates that have been lower, impacted by retirements, budget cuts and personal decisions to leave.

“We had no non-renewals. I can say that we had one senior teacher retire in a position that is excessively difficult to fill,” Zielinski explained.

Although the retention rate has decreased this year, the numbers stay fairly consistent for Mahar as Zielinski noted, “We haven’t really had much of a change, other than a retirement this year, and then we did have a reduction with, unfortunately, one member of the Guidance Department.”

Zielinski also reflected on the state of teaching as being challenging, with some teachers deciding to leave the field. Additionally, she noted anecdotally that districts in the surrounding area have reduced funding with which they can maintain staffing levels, impacting retention.

“The other issue is people who come into teaching and try it out, or are there for so many years, and say, ‘I’m done, it’s hard, this is not what I expected,’” she said.

Although retention has been a topic in the district, Zielinski noted that recent salary increases for staff and a commitment to student success through certifications and internship opportunities will allow for this to increase.

“The concept of teacher retention is complicated, and districts are all struggling with it because every district wants to have the best possible teachers in front of our students,” Zielinski said. “It’s a journey for them, and their skills get better every year. We have at Mahar some absolutely fantastic, great teachers and we want to retain them.”

Teacher retention data for districts across Massachusetts can be viewed at profiles.doe.mass.edu/statereport/staffingRetentionRates.aspx.

Erin-Leigh Hoffman can be reached at ehoffman@recorder.com or 413-930-4231.