As an international school, teacher retention is a tricky subject. Part of what makes learning at an international school so rich is the diversity of staff: different experiences, different teacher training, different perspectives and the unique approaches our diverse educators bring to the classroom. At Futuro Verde, we seek to hire and retain diverse and highly qualified staff each year. For the 2018 school year, we boast staff members from 11 different countries from across North, Central and South America and Europe. When new staff join Futuro Verde, they do so committing to a minimum two to three year contract (pending positive review and a renewal offer from FV). However, the diversity we seek is not only geographic, and we are proud to continue to hire with diversity of age, race and ethnicity, gender, life experience and personality. Our students are a diverse group and we strive to reflect that diversity among our staff.
The question is, what is the profile of an educator who will stay at Futuro Verde for an extended period of time? Is it important for all our staff to commit to the school for multiple years? In my experience, I would encourage the following mindset and considerations when committing to support teacher retention at our jungle, international, IB school:
- As a community, assure we support existing staff- send them a positive note, maintain open communication, invite them to form a meaningful part of our extended community and encourage support for school policies that retain our amazing teachers.
- For parents and students it is important to accept natural patterns of attrition. Some staff will come to FV, plant roots and stay for years and years. Others will choose FV for a set period of time and then move on to new adventures and experiences. Both types of teachers offer us enrichment as a school community and it is helpful to accept that these cycles of retention and attrition are typical in any international school.
As I enter into my fifth year here at Futuro Verde and as we come into our 10th anniversary as a school, I am most grateful for the amazing rate of retention of our committed Futuro Verde families! Thank you all for your ongoing support of our school, our progress and our future!
