Orange County NC Website
Browse       Search
10 <br /> 1 Slide #15 <br /> 2025 -2026 Staffing Upd'at'e` <br /> School-Based Positions <br /> 1,527 of 1,558 Positions Filled (98.017.) <br /> 1,096 of 1,109 Certified Positions Filled (98.8%) <br /> • 201 of 216 EC Positions Filled (93.117o) <br /> • 40 of 40 MLL Teacher Positions Filled (100%) <br /> ■ Sb of 57 Pre-K Positions Filled (98.2%) <br /> THINK(AMD ACT) <br /> 2 <br /> 3 Ashauna Harris emphasized that "retention is the new recruitment," particularly <br /> 4 considering the declining enrollment in teacher education programs across the board. She said <br /> 5 that the pipeline for producing new teachers is shrinking, the focus has shifted towards keeping <br /> 6 existing skilled educators within the system. <br /> 7 Chair Bedford asked what MLL stands for. <br /> 8 Ashauna Harris said "multi-language learner." <br /> 9 Commissioner Portie-Ascott asked about certification requirements for EC Teacher <br /> 10 Assistants in relation to the vacancies in those positions. <br /> 11 Ashauna Harris said these positions are particularly difficult to fill and require 42 or 48 <br /> 12 hours of college credit; however, any additional training is provided by the district. She said that <br /> 13 she recently did a radio advertisement to recruit teacher assistants and substitute teachers. She <br /> 14 said that these are high-demand positions that, unfortunately, just don't pay enough. She <br /> 15 Commissioner McKee inquired about bus driver shortages seen elsewhere in the state. <br /> 16 Ashauna Harris said the Transportation team works extremely hard to find bus drivers, so, <br /> 17 thankfully, that has not been an issue for CHCCS. She confirmed that there are some vacancies, <br /> 18 but there are contingency plans with all transportation office staff, including directors, trained to <br /> 19 drive buses. <br /> 20 Commissioner Fowler followed up on whether EC teacher assistants still received a pay <br /> 21 differential. <br /> 22 Ashauna Harris confirmed they are one salary grade above regular teacher assistants. <br /> 23 <br /> 24 b. Orange County Schools <br /> 25 OCS Board of Education Chair, Will Atherton, opened by thanking the county <br /> 26 commissioners for their partnership and willingness to try new collaborative approaches. He <br /> 27 congratulated OCS on their recent accountability results, highlighting that they were in a three- <br /> 28 way tie statewide for all schools meeting or exceeding growth—the first time in district history. He <br /> 29 said the district also showed growth increases across all subgroup data. <br /> 30 Danielle Jones, OCS superintendent, reflected on the successful previous year and the <br /> 31 intensive work over the past 18 months to align district goals and ensure everyone understood <br /> 32 the steps needed to achieve them. She said the district has focused on reviewing existing <br /> 33 programming and resources rather than introducing new initiatives, ensuring proper evaluation of <br /> 34 current programs. She emphasized supporting educators with the necessary resources to <br /> 35 improve retention, acknowledging the increasing difficulty of maintaining teaching staff. <br /> 36 <br /> 37 Rhonda Rath, OCS Chief Financial Officer, made the following presentation: <br />