NEIU not focus for CUSD 303

Community Unit School District 303 (CUSD 303) of St. Charles is not looking to NEIU as a major focus for recruiting new teachers. The district is focusing on Northern Illinois University, University of Illinois, and Illinois State University to find new teachers, as put out by the Summit 303 recommendations. Summit 303 is a strategic plan developed by the district to provide superior education. One of the goals of the plan is to make District 303 a destination district for teachers. They hope by doing so they will have the ability to choose from the best candidates.

"We are focusing on the schools that have given us the best teachers and the best retention," said Brian Harris, Assistant Superintendant for CUSD 303 Human Resources. "Those schools are Northern Illinois University, University of Illinois, and Illinois State University. We have had a few teachers from Northeastern Illinois University but it is a small program and don't typically get too many teachers from there." The idea of the Summit 303 proposal is to maximize recruiting costs by focusing on the most fruitful schools for candidates. "My suspicion is that District 303 does not know very much about Northeastern Illinois University based on the statement that we are a 'small program,'" said Maureen Gillette, Dean of the College of Education at Northeastern Illinois University. "We are one of the largest producers of teachers and principals in Illinois." 

"In 2007 we were 11th in the nation in granting education degrees to Latino students and 21st in the nation in granting education degrees to Asian-American students."

Gillette explained why NEIU may not be a focus for CUSD 303. "St. Charles is quite a ways from NEIU and we do not draw too many students in the College of Education from that area.  It is also too far for us to place student teachers in St. Charles. About 50 percent of NEIU students begin their teaching career in Chicago Public School. The other 50 percent teach in districts all over northern Illinois. We have graduates as far north as the Wisconsin border, as far west as Elburn, and as far south as the Crete-Monee area. After CPS, the districts that employ the most NEIU graduates are Waukegan, Cicero, and Evanston."

"Our graduate survey data indicates that the retention of our graduates in the schools where they teach is very high," said Gillette. "District 303 should look to NEIU for a diverse pool of well-prepared, talented teachers, many of whom are bilingual. Our graduates understand the complex issues facing schools today because they have done their clinical experiences and student teaching in diverse urban and suburban settings."