From left, Jamestown Public Schools Board of Education Vice President Joe Pawelski, and President Paul Abbott discuss matters Tuesday. P-J photo by Michael Zabrodsky

To help with attracting and keeping teachers in Jamestown Public Schools, a city resident and JPS Love Elementary School teacher outlined an idea Tuesday to the board of education.

Lori Cobb, a fourth grade teacher, proposed tapping into the pool of paraprofessionals that already work within the district. She said that most JPS paraprofessionals already have classroom management skills in every grade level.

“In my building, there’s such talent, dedication and commitment to the students,” Cobb said. “I find it breathtaking. Actually, often, they are the first phase that the kids see and the last at the end of every day. … I applaud them for their commitment and their talent.”

Cobb added that the district could potentially help them with getting a four-year teaching degree, and eventually help them to obtain a state certification.

“They’re here. They’re paras. They’re brilliant. They work hard,” Cobb said.

Superintendent Dr. Kevin Whitaker said within the district, there is Teachers of Tomorrow Grant money that may be used to help with the group.

“I love it when people think outside the box,” Whitaker said. “There are a number of opportunities (within the district) to do that including the Teachers of Tomorrow grant. (We could) recruit from within.”

In December 2024, Human Resources Director Renee Garrett told the board attracting and retaining teachers takes teamwork.

Garrett noted at that December school board meeting that the district’s needs are much like other districts that JPS works with, and competes against for attracting teachers. Garrett said retention rates for the 2023-2024 school year were clerical workers at 100 percent, administrative rate at 100 percent, teachers at 96 percent, and food service workers at 92 percent, and bus drivers at 83 percent. Garrett said the bus driver rate is due to relocation, and needs of their spouses.

Enrollment in college teacher preparation programs has declined by 53 percent, Garrett said, so JPS has had to rely on other means to recruit teachers. In the past, the district would put an advertisement in newspapers, and teachers would apply for jobs, and teachers would stay in the district.

Garrett said in December, the district has begun using different strategies to attract teachers including social media and traditional advertising platforms; job fairs; labor, college, and community partnerships; and compensation.

The board also heard an update about the high school cafeteria.

JPS is in the midst construction at JHS where crews are replacing 50% of the roof, renovating the second floor, renovating the Information Services Department, renovating the receiving and custodial area, abating and sealing the cafeteria floor, adding new furniture for the second floor, repairing auditorium ceiling, and repairing pool gutter drains.

Alyssa Catlin, project manager with Young & Wright Architectural, said construction crews are looking to add an atrium into the cafeteria.

In other business:

– The board approved a $12,000 disbursement to the New York State Association of Small City School Districts for the Maisto case or Maisto v. The State of New York. First filed in 2009 by parents and students from eight small-city school districts, the lawsuit contends New York state denied students a sound education by underfunding the districts. JPS has been involved in the lawsuit from the beginning; other districts named include Niagara Falls, Kingston, Port Jervis, Poughkeepsie, Mount Vernon, Newburgh and Utica.

The board approved combining boys swimming with Frewsburg Central School, Southwestern Central School, and Falconer Central School.