COMPETENCY 10: STAFF PERSONNEL

Related Task: 10.8

Knowledge of the principles of recruiting and selecting teaching personnel.
Specific Task: 10.8.4
Review placement files of at least eight candidates for a teaching position. Make
recommendations for candidate selection and justify.
Narrative Description of Specific Task:
I will observe and participate in the process of hiring an additional teacher for the 20152016 school year at New Groningen Elementary. After reviewing the job posting and
discussing the needs with the building administrator, I will review the submitted
applications and will make recommendations for which candidates to interview. I will
participate in the interview process and will provide the administrator with my
recommendation for selection, with thorough justification.
SMART Goal:
By April of 2015, I will observe and participate in the hiring process of a classroom teacher
for the Spanish Immersion program in Zeeland Public Schools. I will review the
applications and files/supplemental materials of at least eight candidates, participate in the
interview process, and provide my recommendation for selection to my building
administrator.
Description and Rationale:
Zeeland Public Schools (ZPS) started a new Spanish Immersion program in the fall of 2014.
The program began with one section of Kindergarten and one section of 1st grade at New
Groningen elementary, and one section of Kindergarten and one section of 2nd grade at
Lincoln elementary. The two sections at New Groningen are taught by native Spanishspeakers with Spanish Immersion teaching experience; the two sections at Lincoln are

taught by non-native Spanish speakers. The four teachers work closely as a team and have
done an incredible job launching this new educational program for ZPS.
Enrollment for the Spanish Immersion program began in the spring of 2014 and all four
classrooms reached capacity quickly. There are a number of other schools in the area
(Holland West, Holland Christian, Zeeland Christian, Corpus Christi, to name a few) that
offer Spanish Immersion options for elementary students and it was no surprise that this
program was well-received by the ZPS community.
ZPS posted the opening for 3 Spanish Immersion teaching positions on January 16 and set
the postings to close on January 29. During that time period, 8 applications were received
through Applitrack, the website that ZPS uses for hiring.
My experience:
I began my work on this competency by reviewing the job posting and talking with building
principals (Laurie Poll, New Groningen and Tom DeGraaf, Lincoln) about what they were
looking for in potential candidates for these 3 Spanish Immersion teaching positions. After
getting a better idea of the big picture, I logged into Applitrack and began sifting through
the applications. I created a table (attached) to compare applicants based on criteria that
was determined by the two principals (Mrs. Poll and Mr. DeGraaf) and came up with my
recommendations for three candidates to call in for face-to-face interviews. Mrs. Poll
contacted the applicants after the posting closed on January 29, and set up their interviews
for February 22 and 24.
Mrs. Poll, Mr. DeGraaf, and ZPS assistant superintendent, Jon Voss, interviewed the first
candidate on February 22. Because this interview was held outside of school hours, the
administrators conducted the interview alone. I was not involved in this interview, but
received a full summary and final recommendation the next day: the administrators
decided to offer this candidate (candidate 8 on the attached spreadsheet) a full-time
teaching position. They were confident in this candidates Spanish-speaking ability, and
experience launching and teaching in a Spanish Immersion program, and they felt that she
would be a great fit with the current ZPS Spanish Immersion teaching staff.

On February 24, I joined Mrs. Poll, Mr. DeGraaf, and three current ZPS Spanish Immersion
teachers (2 native Spanish-speakers from New Groningen and one non-native Spanish
speaker from Lincoln) at the ZPS administration building for the remaining two interviews
(candidates 3 and 4 on the attached spreadsheet.)
During each interview, our team took turns asking questions from the approved list
(attached) and the candidates alternated between answering in English and in Spanish. Our
interview team was listening for strong, detailed, and confident answers that reflected
experience and expertise in the areas of curriculum, technology, parent communication,
and teamwork. The three current Spanish Immersion teachers were also listening for
Spanish proficiency and the candidates ability to switch between speaking English and
Spanish. After each interview, our team summarized what we had heard, shared any notes
that we had taken, and gave our overall perceptions after spending time with each
candidate. In the end, we were all in agreement regarding our final decisions: candidate 3
would not be offered a position at this time and candidate 4 would be offered a position via
telephone the next day.
Reflections:
I really appreciated the opportunities that this competency provided: from learning about
what goes into a job posting, to reviewing applications in Applitrack, to conducting
interviews and making formal recommendations for hiring. This experience provided me
with hands-on opportunities to initiate and participate in processes that I have only been
on the opposite side of in the past.
Through this experience, I realized how absolutely critical it is to know what youre looking
for before beginning the hiring process. In one of my recent classes, weve discussed how
hiring a teacher is making a long-term investment; over the course of a teachers career, the
district will be investing a great deal of time, energy, and money on that particular person.
In order to offer a competitive and quality educational experience, it is imperative that we
have the best teachers in our classrooms and in front of our students; we cannot guarantee
that unless we are diligent and thoughtful with our hiring process and who we bring into
the district.

While many of the applications that I reviewed reflected high-quality teachers with
excellent experiences and diverse backgrounds, the candidates that we selected to
interview were the best of the best. In a competitive job market, every detail about a
teachers preparation, training, and presentation matters. The applicants who had
obviously taken time on their applications really did stand out, and their attention to detail
did not go unnoticed by our interview team. Well-written cover letters, detailed resumes
with diverse experiences, excellent references, and documentation of degrees and
certifications earned all played into our decision on which candidates to invite for an
interview. If an application was incomplete or unprofessional, I can honestly say that I did
not feel motivated to give that candidate a second look. This was a powerful teachable
moment for me, especially as I begin to think about applying for administrative positions.
In the end, we extended job offers to candidates 4 and 8, who both had 7 years of teaching
experience in Spanish Immersion classrooms, excellent Spanish-speaking skills, and
engaging personalities. Both candidates presented themselves as hard-workers and selfstarters who are willing to help work the kinks out of a relatively new program while
working as team players and, above all, teaching, inspiring, loving, and nurturing children.
Both candidates accepted the teaching positions that were offered, and are planning to
begin working for ZPS in the fall of 2015. There is one remaining opening for a Spanish
Immersion teacher with ZPS; that position will be re-posted soon, in hopes of finding a
third candidate as qualified and professional as the first two.

Related Documents:
1.0 FTE Spanish Immersion Teacher

Apply Online

Category: Elementary School Teaching & Professional Staff

Date Posted: 1/16/2015
Location: New Groningen/Lincoln Elementaries
Date Closing: 01/29/2015

Two to Three Spanish Immersion Teaching Positions available beginning Fall 2015

We are currently seeking innovative, risk taking teachers for our elementary Spanish
Immersion program. Anticipated grade levels will range from Kindergarten - 3rd grade.
Ideal candidates are native Spanish speakers who have experience teaching Spanish
Immersion at the elementary level. Non-native speakers will be considered, but will need
to verify their Spanish language skills.
Qualifications:
Current Michigan teaching certificate with Elementary endorsement is required. Must be
highly qualified.
Benefits:
Benefit package per Master Agreement
Due to the number of applications we receive, phone calls are discouraged. Once the
posting deadline date has been met (if applicable), the supervisor/principal will review
applications and schedule interviews with the most qualified candidates. An email will be
sent to applicants when the position has been filled.

Spanish Immersion Applicant Summary

January 2015
Applicant

Certification

Number

Native

Years of

Speaker?

Teaching

Additional Information

Experience
1

None

Yes

None

Bilingual para-professional experience. Not a

certified teacher.

BA in Spanish and

No

None

Elementary Education

Many education placements in Spanish Immersion

during undergrad. Errors on cover letter. No
teaching experience yet.

BA in Spanish and

No

None

Elementary Education

Many education placements in Spanish Immersion

during undergrad. 2 placements in ZPS. Spent a
semester in Spain. Excellent reference letters. Will
be long-term subbing in 3rd grade Spanish
Immersion this spring.

BA in Elementary

Yes

7 years

Excellent reference letters. Has completed

Education with

add.a.lingua training and mentored new Spanish

Bilingual/ESL

Immersion teachers. Has taught Spanish Immersion

endorsements;

in Chicago and in an award-winning two-way

Masters in Education.

bilingual program in Holland.

BA in Elementary

No

None

Criminal justice background. No teaching experience

Education with

just subbing. No cover letter or reference letters

Spanish minor (1994-

included with application.

1998)
6

BS in Education from

Yes

None

No US teacher certification listed.

No

18 years

No certifications or degrees in Spanish. 18 years of

Madrid, Spain
7

BA in Elementary
Education; Masters in

combined experience in teaching and ECC

Curriculum and

administration.

Instruction
8

BA in Elementary

No

7 years

Studied abroad in Spain. 7 years of Spanish

Education and

Immersion teaching experience, including start-up

Spanish Education;

of a program in Rockford. Great references.

Masters in
Elementary Education

ZPS Spanish Immersion Interviews 2015

List of Approved Questions

What has led you to take an interest in this position?

What are three adjectives that you would use to describe you and how would these be
visible in our school setting?
Tell us what you know about this grade level of learner socially and academically.
What are some of the assessments you feel are important to administer to students that
would help guide your instruction? How would you use them?
Describe what your literacy instruction block would look like.
What would your math instruction block look like?
How will you differentiate instruction to meet the various levels of learners in your room?
How will you communicate with parents? What are some ways you will involve them in
their childs education?
Describe your classroom management system.
What does teaming mean to you and how will you collaborate with peers to ensure this
happen?
What are your greatest areas of strength as a teacher?
What is your greatest weakness that you would need PD or support with in this position?
Why are you the best candidate for this position?