Teaching Career in Vegas a Sure-Bet

Facing a 500-teacher shortfall for the start of the school year in Clark County, Las Vegas is working overtime to lure people interested in teaching careers to the Silver State.

Upping the Ante for Teaching Positions

With over 1,900 teaching positions available, the Clark County School District (CCSD) has enlisted 180 recruiters to find teachers. These recruiters have traveled to 40 different states to entice people to teach in southern Nevada. Thus far, over a thousand people have accepted, but the district has also met with a 21% rejection rate. This has forced the CCSD to be more aggressive and offer signing bonuses, extra salary steps, and mortgage assistance to fill the teaching positions.

Retired Teachers Hitting it Big

CCSD officials aren't just looking to recruit over long distances. They're recruiting from teachers long done with their teaching careers. The CCSD has enticed retired teachers back into the classroom with offers of earning their full retirement and a full salary.

Distance Learning for a Teaching Degree

The Bureau of Labor Statistics bears out the favorable outlook for teachers. The BLS suggests that people will find "good to excellent" job opportunities in a teaching career over the next ten years. If you're not concerned about traveling distances and learning to love a new area of the U.S., you can take your teaching degree to the South and the West, where the most teaching career opportunities are projected to be.

A distance learning degree can get you started in a teaching career. If you're interested in a sunny southern Nevada home, math, science, and special education are areas of teaching that are in high demand. A distance learning degree will give you the opportunity to earn a teaching degree regardless of location, and odds are for a job in Las Vegas, you could hit it big with a teaching career.

Sources
Las Vegas Teacher Shortage
Bureau of Labor Statistics on Teaching Careers

About the Author
James Tolles is the Managing Editor for hq|publications. He helped write and edit the successful application for Sparks, NV that earned the city honors as a 2004 All-America City Finalist-a title held by only 30 cities in the nation. He is also a freelance writer. He attended a four year liberal arts college and holds two B.A. degrees, one in Creative Writing and the other in History.