California Recruiting Oregon Teachers

Recruiters from California’s largest school district are hoping to entice out-of-work Oregon teachers to move south.

California’s need for teachers to reduce class sizes comes just as Portland and some other Oregon school districts are cutting staff.

Republican Gov. Pete Wilson is offering $770 million to his state’s public school systems to make classes smaller.

The Los Angeles Unified School District needs 2,000 educators by February. And throughout California, districts must hire 26,000 teachers to reduce class sizes from about 30 children to 20 in kindergarten through third grade.

California’s class sizes gradually worsened after the state’s tax revolt movement, making those classes the nation’s largest, according to National Education Association statistics.

Oregon educators oversee about five fewer students than do California teachers. In the five years since the passage of a state property tax limit, Oregon class sizes have climbed to levels unseen in two decades.

The Los Angeles district already has sent fliers to 17 Oregon colleges, plans to advertise in The Oregonian newspaper and may send recruiters to Oregon.

The recruiters like the prospect of tapping 150 teachers who recently got pink slips from the Portland Public Schools, as well as teachers from other Oregon districts.