A flood of teacher resignations four months into the school year have left Arizona districts scrambling to fill classroom positions before Christmas break.

As of Dec. 8, 627 teachers – regardless of reason, and approved through their school – have resigned throughout the state, according to a report by the Arizona School Personnel Administrators Association.

An additional 239 teachers reportedly abandoned their jobs without notice, making the teacher exodus equal nearly 900 since August.

The report compiled data from 172 school districts and charter schools.

By Wednesday, the Maricopa Unified School District had approved the resignations of 10 teachers and two administrators since the beginning of the school year. Five of those teachers resigned in December.

Tom Becket, MUSD Human Resources director, said teacher resignations for this year and those previous, were for a variety of reasons.

“My recollection is the majority of the teacher resignations during school years are for two primary reasons: personal or family health, and relocation of spouse/family,” Beckett said.

ASPAA attributes part of the overall problem to low teacher pay in the state.

“Arizona teacher pay is among the lowest in the country, and it will be extremely challenging for public schools to address teacher pay this spring in the face of an increasing minimum wage for support staff, and almost no funding for capital expenses,” according to an ASPAA news release.

This year MUSD attempted to address the teacher shortage by voting to increase the salary of its employees by 3 percent. Teachers also received an additional, one-time, 1 percent increase this year from the state, equaling what amounts to less than $600 per teacher.

In August, the district finished hiring 50 additional teachers through override funds.

To retain its teaching staff, MUSD and other districts can choose to implement fees to those who break their contracts.

“The contractual liquidated damages fee imposed by the district has been a deterrent for teachers seeking release for new employment opportunities,” Beckett said.

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