Being a teacher isn’t just a career. It’s a calling to help teach the next generation — the individuals who will one day lead the world. 

“I really love investing in students…high schoolers are a really fun age in which you can really invest in their future and help them figure out their future, which is something I am very passionate about,” Mrs. Taylor King said, a teacher who recently transitioned from working in pharmaceuticals to being a teacher in the FCS department at Paul Laurence Dunbar High School. 

Fayette County Public Schools has a mission to help educate students and prepare them for the world by providing students with excellent staff.

The mission of FCPS is to “recruit, support, and retain excellent staff to create a collaborative community that ensures all students graduate prepared to excel in a global society,” according to their Human Resources Department.

But is that mission truly being lived out? 

For instance, Mrs. Kathy Crump, a business educator with 28 years of experience, has seen her workload increase significantly this year. In addition to her regular teaching schedule, she has been assisting another business class across the hallway that lacks a permanent teacher.

“I help give information and content for that, but as you know, if I’m not there with those students, just the sub filling in is doing the best to make sure that they get their work done… I’ve been loaded down with trying to help… I step in and I’ve been trying to cover those classes too, but it’s been really tough,” Mrs. Crump said.

At the start of the year, a teacher was hired, but quit after just three days. From then until fall break, a substitute was in those classes. After the break, a second teacher was brought in, only to resign after his first day. Since then, staff members like the College and Career Coach, Mrs. Pamela Bates, and several administrators have stepped in, but there’s only so much they can do. This raises a concern: how can these classes function as a collaborative community preparing students for global society when six of them don’t have a teacher present? 

Meanwhile, the dedicated teachers and staff they already have in place are spending countless hours adapting to yet another new system implemented by the district. Many feel frustrated, believing the district focuses more on telling teachers what to do rather than asking what support they need. What do the teachers need to help their students excel in a global society? 

Dunbar English teacher Mrs. Tara Wilkinson shared frustration with the lack of longevity of classroom procedures and platforms.

“The changes to platforms and things like that, it just, it can get where it’s, like, before we get accustomed and comfortable with something, then something new is going to replace it,” she said. 

FCPS Superintendent Dr. Demetrius Liggins controversially spent almost $7000 to attend a conference in Australia designed to share the best educational practices with large school districts. He stated that trips like these are designed to help students and provide learning opportunities he can share with other educators, but many teachers beg to differ.

“For strategies and educational theories to be effective, they need to be given straight to the teachers. We don’t need district middlemen to teach us what they were taught. We’re the ones in the actual classroom,” a teacher who asked to remain anonymous said.

Not only are teachers receiving little support from the central office on how to better assist their students, but they often face obstacles when seeking individual opportunities to help their students. Mrs. Amber Faris, Dunbar’s librarian, explained how she wanted to attend the American Association of School Librarians— the only event specifically dedicated to school librarians and their role in education. Held every two years, the conference features many notable authors, such as Jason Reynolds. The district has prevented her from attending the conference, which also means missing out on workshops and sessions designed to inspire educators and provide strategies that support teachers and engage students 

“We were told we could not go to a conference out of state,” Mrs. Faris said.

As restrictions tighten and budget deficits grow, it remains uncertain whether FCPS will be able to uphold its motto and maintain an engaging and effective environment for students and teachers.