Topeka USD 501 will issue climate survey on staff, teacher morale - The Topeka Capital-Journal

Topeka USD 501 will issue climate survey on staff, teacher morale

How do Topeka USD 501 employees really feel about their jobs? School board wants to know.
Rafael Garcia

Some Topeka Board of Education members are worried that school staff and teachers are too reluctant to speak up about concerns at their schools, and they want a way to figure out what those concerns are — without the fear of administrative retaliation.

The school board on Thursday evening discussed working with the Kansas Association of School Boards to conduct a school climate survey, which will include the district’s approximately 2,400 staff.

While the district has over the past 10 years hosted its own annual survey for parents, students and staff, USD 501 leaders recognized a need to conduct an independent survey, especially in gauging the district climate now that the COVID-19 pandemic is largely over.

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And although the school board did not necessarily initiate the process of getting an independent survey, board members welcomed it. Especially, in light of concerns brought to them privately by some district staff.

Board member Lisa Schmitt said an independent district-wide survey — “where people could confidently express how they feel about their jobs” — has been one of her main priorities since being elected in November 2021, and that staffers don’t trust the district’s existing feedback portals.

“You don’t live to work. You work to live,” she said. “People don’t want to be miserable in their work. They want to feel like they’re having a positive influence. They want to enjoy and know that the work they’re doing is appreciated across the board. Some of the feedback I’ve been receiving is that some of our staff members don’t feel that.”

Topeka USD 501 has convened morale, school climate committees

In addition to the proposed survey, USD 501 leaders shared work and reports from committees that had been convened to improve school climate and address any issues.

A morale committee — made up of five representatives appointed by the National Education Association teachers’ union and five by USD 501 administration — reported to the board they had not heard any significant school climate concerns.

However, the committee does not have any formal process to report such concerns, and it typically relies on teachers and staff to relay any concerns up the chain through building representatives.

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Meanwhile, other groups reported that efforts to address school mental health, among both teachers and students, have been successful.

Since superintendent Tiffany Anderson’s arrival, the district has screened all students at enrollment for potential mental health issues or needs, assigning teams of interventionists to follow up with those students throughout the school year. Following the suicide of a student who had enrolled during but not before the 2018-2019 school year, USD 501 expanded its screening process to cover any new enrollee.

No Topeka USD 501 student has died by suicide since, the superintendent reported.

Topeka USD 501 staff morale takes on new dimension with national educator shortages

USD 501, like other districts across the country, has not been immune to staffing challenges, especially in recruiting and retaining new teacher candidates and support staff.

But district personnel said they saw promising signs in USD 501’s attrition rates.

Although 430 staff were eligible to retire this year, only 59 chose to actually do so ahead of the traditional deadline of March 31.

Resignation rates, likewise, have trended down after a few anomalous years in the thick of the pandemic. Just above 100 staff had tendered their resignations as of Thursday, compared to when the district would usually receive double that number in the years before COVID.

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Exit interviews, offered electronically to all departing USD 501 employees, showed that the main reasons for employees leaving the district are relocation, retirement eligibility, health issues and lack of experience with classroom management.

Outgoing employees also cited compensation as a factor, which was puzzling for district administrators, since they believe USD 501 to be the third highest paying district in Kansas, and the highest in Shawnee County.

Comparatively, interviews with new hires and remaining staff show that potential employees are drawn to Topeka USD 501 for the district’s reputation, staff and family connections, diversity, alumni, professional development and leadership, among other factors, according to the district’s human relations department.

Topeka Board of Education sees value in survey free of administrative influence

Despite the district’s existing data, the school board said they acknowledged a need to offer employees a separate, independent avenue to offer feedback on the issues they face in schools, what keeps them on the job and what could drive them away.

“For me, this external climate survey is extremely important,” said board member Melanie Stuart-Campbell. “… It is so important we find out where to focus our energies, our resources, our allocations. We know that some schools have higher turnover than others, and we need to know why."

Like Schmitt and Stuart-Campbell, board member Keith Taum said he had heard concerns from district employees. But he was encouraged by the level of confidentiality KASB could provide.

The board will formally vote at its next meeting on a contract with KASB to conduct the climate survey. Board president Sue Bolley and vice president Melanie Stuart-Campbell will handle logistics with the organization.

The plan would be to develop a survey to be administered by KASB at the end of the first quarter of the 2023-24 school year, with various provisions and safeguards to allow for and convey complete anonymity.

Board member Lalo Muñoz said he hasn’t heard any feedback like that in his three years of board service.

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“I’m not convinced that even if we had someone from the outside who would do this and report back to us, whether we’d still get over and convince everyone that they can confide in it and be open,” Muñoz said.

For the district's part, USD 501 administrators said that the annual surveys have always been confidential, and the district has never had a way of tracking responses back to individual staff. Still, they recognized the general apprehension employees might feel to a survey that is issued by the central district office.

Additionally, Schmitt said an independent survey would be a far cry from speaking up during public comment, which can be intimidating, especially if someone has a criticism or concern to share.

The survey could also provide the board with valuable feedback on the decisions they make, not just the administrators who carry them out. That feedback, like that reported by the administrator’s groups and annual survey, may even be positive.

“This may validate what we’re hearing are just a few squeaky wheels,” Schmitt said. “Or it may not. It may be a theme.

“But I think we owe it to our district to find out.”

Rafael Garcia is an education reporter for the Topeka Capital-Journal. He can be reached at rgarcia@cjonline.com or by phone at ‪785-289-5325. Follow him on Twitter at @byRafaelGarcia.