As is often the case for new homeowners, David Nelson and his wife Hannah began accumulating an expensive “to-do” list shortly after purchasing a home in Flint, Mich., in May—from hiring a plumber to patch up leaks to buying a new air conditioning unit. A $10,000 signing bonus from the local school district will help offset the costs.
Nelson, a seasoned high school science teacher who moved this spring from Lansing, Mich., to Flint, admits that the so-called “commitment bonus,” which will be paid in incremental sums throughout his first year in the Flint school district, enticed him to take a closer look at an open position for a 9th grade science teacher at Southwestern Classical Academy. But the bonus wasn’t the only attraction.
“I’ve always felt like I wanted to teach in the community I live in,” said Nelson. He also hoped to find a school community similar to Lansing, where he taught previously and which felt, he said, like it was “putting a lot of work and energy” into a positive rebuilding of sorts. Flint Community Schools, said Nelson, has a similar feel.
The feeling is intentional, according to district leaders, who hope their efforts will launch the school system into a renaissance that parallels what the broader community of Flint is working toward. The city is still recovering from a yearslong water crisis that started in 2014, when pipes were leaching lead into the drinking water. In May, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency finally lifted its emergency order for the city.
Working toward a community rebuild
Four years ago, the city of Flint’s population fell to its lowest levels in 100 years. The school system’s enrollment also has been on the decline. In March 2024, just 2,888 students were enrolled in its schools—out of approximately 13,400 eligible children, according to National Center for Education statistics.
The district, which serves mostly students from low-income households, has struggled with low test scores and had a four-year graduation rate of 44.5% in the 2023-24 school year. Thousands of children in the city were exposed to lead through the water crisis, which caused the percentage of students enrolled in special education in Flint’s public schools to skyrocket.
These challenges make it hard for Flint schools to compete for enrollment with schools of choice, such as other public schools outside of the district where students live, charter schools, and private schools.
In 2024, the state government launched the Michigan Growth Office to attract residents and workers to the state. This May, Flint recorded its first population increase in 25 years; the city grew by 76 residents. Similarly, the public school system embarked on an initiative last school year to grow its student enrollment and recruit certified teachers.
The effort involves a series of commercials and social media campaigns that focus on individual schools’ facilities and programs. Grassroots outreach efforts also play a role.
“This summer, we made sure that we were at community events,” said Kimberly Willis, a spokesperson for the district. Representatives of the district attended a Juneteenth parade in Flint. They hosted a booth at a popular local car show. And they showed up to community neighborhood events, toting free ice cream and bounce houses.
“Basically, we’re like: Come and have fun with us for the day. And if you want information about enrollment, we’re here to talk to you about it,” said Willis.
As the district attempts to rebuild its student population, it’s also working to fill current and pending teacher vacancies. More than half of the district’s teachers are at the cusp of retirement, said Takesha Montgomery, the executive director of human resources.
And with a current starting salary for teachers of $38,000, the district knew it needed to do something to compete with nearby, better-resourced districts for incoming teachers.
“We wanted to have a bit of a competitive edge,” Montgomery said.
Enter commitment bonuses for new teachers. Funded by a state grant, the bonuses the district promises to new certified teachers come in two tiers: one-time $10,000 bonuses for new certified general education teachers who commit to teach for one year, and two annual $12,000 bonuses (for a total of $24,000) for certified special education teachers who make a two-year commitment.
The bonuses will be distributed in multiple installments. This way they double, to an extent, as a retention strategy, Montgomery said. New teachers receive the first installment of their bonus after their completing their first 30 working days, the second one at the end of the first semester, and the remaining sum in their last paycheck of the school year. This same process will be spread over two school years for the special education teaching recruits.
By mid-August, 13 teachers had accepted new positions with Flint Community Schools, and the district had additional offers out to other prospective teaching candidates. A week before school starts on Sept. 2, about 20 teaching vacancies remained throughout the district.
Will teacher signing bonuses stick around as a recruitment tool?
Using bonuses as a recruitment or retention strategy isn’t new. Districts and some states have offered them in the past—usually in the ballpark of a few thousand dollars. But in some areas, where teacher shortages are most severe, the bonuses can be substantial.
In the spring of 2023, the Oklahoma State Department of Education announced that it would be offering bonus payments of up to $50,000 to certified teachers who committed to teaching special education or pre-K-3 in the state’s public schools for a minimum of five years. (The Oklahoma education department didn’t respond to questions from Education Week about how many jobseekers accepted the bonuses and remained with their district.)
Even so, some experts suggest that using bonuses as a recruitment tool is falling out of favor, especially with the expiration of the federal pandemic relief aid.
“We are seeing more districts move away from hiring bonuses. If there is money available, it is more likely to be used as retention bonuses,” said Kelly Coash-Johnson, executive director of the American Association of School Personnel Administrators.
“With the looming budget cuts to education, I would anticipate seeing this practice significantly decreased, if not eliminated altogether,” Coash-Johnson added.
Montgomery, in Flint public schools, acknowledges that bonuses only go so far to build up a strong teaching workforce.
“For us, it’s more important to make sure not only that we are getting [teachers] in the front door,” but they’re also planning to stay, she said.
The district recently hired a chief innovation officer, whose job includes finding ways to keep valued educators engaged—from meaningful professional development experiences to mentoring opportunities and beyond.
Nelson, one of the district’s new hires, noticed the efforts during a recent teacher orientation event.
“I could feel a lot of energy in the room and a lot of excitement for the direction that the district is going,” he said. “I was really impressed by the new staff orientation, and it left me feeling really excited.”
