Members of the Gary Teachers Union and concerned residents filled the union office for a standing-room-only meeting Thursday to discuss the Gary Community School Corporation’s decision to enlist virtual teachers amid a nationwide teacher shortage.
On July 9, the Gary School Board voted to retain Proximity, a company based in Austin, Texas, to supply up to 41 licensed online teachers for middle and high school classrooms.
The decision to use Proximity, drew sharp criticism at the meeting, with attendees alleging a lack of transparency, unfair labor practices, and a move toward privatization that they said could harm the local public school system.
In the past, the district has relied on classroom teachers working under emergency state permits to address teacher shortages. These educators hold a bachelor’s degree but are not licensed to teach.
According to Jovanka Cvitkovich, chief human resources officer for the Gary Community School Corporation, about one-third of the teaching staff worked under emergency permits last year. Many of those permits could not be renewed because the teachers did not meet state requirements.
The dismissal of emergency permit teachers emerged as a major flashpoint for the Gary Teachers’ Union. GlenEva Dunham, Local 4 union president, told the crowd the union plans to take formal action against the school district.
“We are in the process of filing an unfair labor practice,” Dunham told attendees. “The emergency committee is in our contract. We have a recognition clause that recognizes them as part of the union. And just because their license expired, their contract did not expire with this union, and we have an agreement with the Indiana employees relations board.”
Superintendent Yvonne Stokes affirmed the district’s commitment to quality education by prioritizing licensed teachers and in-person instruction, adding it values its educators and is actively hiring while supporting those working toward certification.
“We remain focused on providing the best for our scholars, which includes instruction delivered by highly qualified, licensed teachers,” Stokes said.
“We value our teachers and will continue to work to find a path forward to secure in-person, licensed instructors,” she said. “We are still hiring and remain in contact with those teachers who are demonstrating efforts to meet the guidelines set forth by the law to obtain their certification.”
State Rep. Vernon Smith, the ranking minority member of the Indiana House Education Committee, voiced opposition to filling so many teaching positions with virtual instructors.
“I’ve done a lot of research, and the topic has been discussed in the legislature quite frequently, about virtual education,” Smith explained. “It is not all what it is said to be, and the research shows that virtual education does not work with children of color and children living in poverty. It does not work with them.”
While lawmakers and residents voiced concerns, district leaders said the realities of today’s hiring landscape require flexible solutions.
“The current staffing crisis — locally, statewide, and nationwide — demands that we approach teacher recruitment and placement with both creativity and accountability,” Cvitkovich said.
“For far too long, we have relied on renewing emergency permits for individuals who have not shown sufficient progress toward full licensure, nor demonstrated the instructional effectiveness needed to move student achievement forward. This is no longer a viable or responsible solution.”
Teacher pay was also raised as a root issue for the lack of teachers.
“You have a teacher shortage in this country,” said Samantha Jordan, regional director for the American Federation of Teachers. “But the reason we have a teacher shortage is because educators and paraprofessionals are not paid enough or respected to fully fund public education in this country, and now we no longer do, and that is also something that needs to change.”
The General Assembly passed legislation this session that raises the minimum salary for teachers from $40,000 to $45,000.
NAACP Gary Branch President Steve Mays emphasized the need for stronger leadership and parent involvement.
“The leadership has to talk,” Mays said. “We did all this fighting to get the schools back. We get them back, and then we implode on each other. We raised everybody’s tax bill on a referendum. How did that work out?
“We have to do better. The parents have to do better. Parents are the missing ingredient. We often leave them off the table. They gotta get to the front of the table because the teachers can’t do it all.”
Dunham called for concerned residents to show up to the next school board meeting, which is set for Aug. 14. In addition, the contact information for each board member was passed throughout the room so that residents could have a direct line to express their concerns.