Douglas County School District is starting the school year down hundreds of staff, from teachers to bus drivers, because of a lack of competitive pay. 

Compared to surrounding districts of similar size, Douglas County offers some of the lowest salaries and hourly wages for teachers, education assistants and bus drivers, though not for a lack of appreciation. 

School districts received an 8% funding increase from the state for the 2023-24 school year, but Douglas County lags behind in offering competitive salaries and wages because of differences in locally provided funding, Superintendent Erin Kane said. 

“Over time, as our neighbors have passed mill levy override after mill levy override, their funding per student continues to increase,” Kane said. 

Douglas County receives $1,167 per student through mill levy overrides, which is less than Denver Public Schools ($3,308 per student), Littleton Public Schools ($3,240 per student), Cherry Creek School District ($3,239 per student) and JefferCo School District ($1,910 per student).

This year, by drawing down district reserves, Douglas County was able to raise starting teacher salaries from $43,680 to $45,209. However, other districts also raised their starting salaries. 

Cherry Creek School District starts teachers at $58,710; Denver Public Schools starts at $54,141; JeffCo School District offers $50,000; and Littleton Public Schools’ teachers start at $51,274. 

One Legend High School teacher left the district on the first day of school for a job in Cherry Creek, his colleague told the school board at the Aug. 8 meeting. 

Several district staff voiced concern about the impacts of the staff shortages that night. Julie Crawford, a principal at Eldorado Elementary, said hiring over the summer was a struggle for schools.

“The decrease in the applicant pool and the scarcity of qualified candidates have been deeply concerning,” she said. “Simply put, it is not that we have unqualified applicants, it’s that we have zero applicants.”

Douglas County has 52 teacher openings currently, which is similar to the number of openings last year, 59, but has had fewer applicants for the openings compared to last year, Kane said. Kane added that more candidates are declining job offers than last year.

Other positions have seen a more significant increase in openings. Last year, the district started with 75 open bus driver positions and 98 open education assistant roles. This year, the district is short 104 bus drivers and 155 education assistants. 

Kane said the shortages mean the district has had to rely more on substitute teachers, contracting with third-parties for transportation for special education students and instituting rolling cancellations of bus routes. 

“It means an increased work load for our employees because when you’re down a teacher, all the other teachers are trying to pick up the slack left behind,” she said.

In an effort to address hiring and staff retention, the school board approved ballot language for a $66 million mill levy override at the Aug. 8 meeting. The money would go to increasing pay and benefits, as well as adding security staff.

*Correction: An earlier version of this story had the incorrect starting salary for Cherry Creek School District teachers. It is $58,710.