Frontline Education Releases Research Brief Analyzing Recruiting and Hiring Data for Non-Instructional Roles

Report leverages data from the Frontline Research & Learning Institute and provides current trends on the applicant pool and open positions with a spotlight on transportation services

Malvern, PA, August 16, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE)– Frontline Education, a leading provider of administration software purpose-built for educators in K-12, today announced the release of The Longitudinal Recruiting and Hiring Landscape for Non-Instructional Education Employees. Developed by the Frontline Research & Learning Institute, the research brief provides recent trends on the non-instructional labor shortage, offers insights on the root causes of the current situation, and outlines recommendations to minimize the number of open positions and ensure that the most qualified candidates are being hired.

While news of the teacher shortage continues to dominate headlines, this brief explores the under-examined roles required to operate and maintain successful K-12 organizations. These roles include bus drivers, food service employees, security personnel, office administrators, teacher’s aids, tutors and technology providers, among others.

The data shows that both the increase in the number of open positions and the decrease in the quantity of candidates applying for jobs are contributing to the non-instructional labor shortage. However, the decline in candidates is more pronounced than the increase in available jobs, indicating that the shortage is more heavily related to a supply issue, rather than an increase in demand. Non-instructional job openings posted in 2022 attracted, on average, approximately 38% less applications than job postings in 2019.

“Districts are diligently working to navigate the labor shortage and deploying year-round recruiting and hiring efforts to ensure that they can deliver an excellent educational experience to the students they serve. That experience includes the engagement and support of critical, non-instructional employees—from the bus drivers who transport students to and from school to the food service employees who provide meals to the students while they are there,” said Elizabeth Combs, Managing Director of Frontline Research and Learning Institute. “The goal of this brief is to leverage actionable data from the Frontline Research & Learning Institute and provide K-12 leaders with insights that may be applied to their recruiting and hiring strategies so they can attract the highest quality applicants from the available pool.”

The research brief is the first in a series dedicated to highlighting the story data tells in reference to K-12 staff shortages. It is published by the Frontline Research & Learning Institute, a division of Frontline Education dedicated to providing data-driven research, resources and observations to support and advance the educational community. The Institute leverages the millions of data records collected and anonymized from Frontline’s solutions. This report utilized data from Frontline HCM, a comprehensive platform that enables district leaders to better attract, retain and professionally develop teachers and staff while making HR interactions as effective and efficient as possible.

A subsequent research brief focused on the teacher shortage will be released in the coming weeks. The full research brief can be downloaded here.

About Frontline

Frontline Education is a leading provider of school administration software, connecting solutions for student and special programs, business operations and human capital management with powerful analytics to empower educators. Frontline partners with school systems to deliver tools, data and insights that support greater efficiency and productivity, enabling school leaders to spend more time and resources executing strategies that drive educator effectiveness, student success and district excellence.

Frontline’s broad portfolio includes solutions for proactive recruiting and hiring, absence and time management, professional growth, student information systems, special education, special programs, Medicaid reimbursement, school health management, inventory control and asset management, payroll, benefits and financial management, and analytics solutions that help district leaders tap into their data to make more informed decisions for the benefit of their students and communities. Over 10,000 clients representing millions of educators, administrators and support personnel have partnered with Frontline Education in their efforts to develop the next generation of learners.