NYC DOE: ATRs Are "Risky"

NYC DOE Teacher Hiring Support Center

Services

 LINK

 

The Teacher Hiring Support Center (THSC) is managed by the Office of Teacher Recruitment and Quality and is a dynamic resource center for NYC Department of Education teachers who have been excessed or are seeking to transfer schools during the Open Market hiring season.

The team at THSC is committed to providing current NYC teachers with a wealth of resources, information and support services unlike any other urban school district of our size. We administer workshops, host recruitment fairs, offer daily phone and email support, and continually work to deliver crucial resources to teachers.

Although it is ultimately a teacher's responsibility to secure a new position within the New York City school system, we are committed to equipping you with tools on how to best market yourself as an experienced teacher while you proactively seek to identify a school that is a mutual match for your personal and professional needs.

Teachers in Excess

The Teacher Hiring Support Center (THSC) is managed by the New York City Department of Education's (NYCDOE) Office of Teacher Recruitment and Quality (TRQ), and is a hiring resource center for existing NYCDOE teachers. For up-to-date hiring communication that may affect you, please routinely visit our announcements page.

Being a teacher in excess means there is no full-time teaching position in your current building for the upcoming school year.  Formal excess letters are generated and distributed between June and July, and this serves as confirmation of being in excess status. For a copy of an official excess letter looks like, please vist the 'Resource Documents' section of our Navigating your Job Search page. 

THSC understands that the uncertainty of being a teacher in excess can be  frustrating, but if you are still excited and passionate about teaching NYC students, you must remain positive and do your best to prepare for the process of identifying schools with vacancies and meeting with principals. With almost 1600 programs and schools, we are confident that there is a school that you can identify to meet your needs.  Visit our Navigating your Job Search page for resources to aid in your search.  Resources include:

• Online resource Portal
• Job search preparation workshops
• Recruitment fairs
• Ambassador phone-bank

Visit our FAQs page where you may find the answers to questions you may have.  To verify whether you are currently a teacher in excess, email us at thsc@schools.nyc.gov or contact 718-935-5280. [Top of Page]

Teachers in the Absent Teacher Reserve (ATR)

Teachers are often confused about the difference between being a teacher in excess and being part of the ATR.  ATRs are excessed teachers who do not find a permanent position at a school by the time the next school year begins.  Teachers in excess do not have to become ATRs. In fact, becoming an ATR is risky.  For example:

- If you do not obtain a fully appointed teaching position by the beginning of the school year, you will be assigned to a school as a member of the ATR pool.  The placement will be made under the collective bargaining agreement, but the assignment will be done centrally and you will have no control over the placement school.  This significantly reduces the likelihood of a mutual fit between you and the school.  If you are already an ATR, there is no guarantee that you will be placed at the same school you were placed at in 2010-2011.

- If you are in fact teaching in a full-time teaching program at a school while you are still in fact a member of the ATR pool, the central NYCDOE policy can still assign you to another school at any time.  Because you are not on the school's budget, the principal cannot guarantee your security. [Top of Page]

Teachers in a Closing/Phasing-Out School

THSC also supports teachers who are in a school that is currently closing or in a phasing out period. While you may have time before you are fiinally excessed from your school, we encourage you to participate in the Open Market Transfer System now.  Starting early will help you take full advantage of being able to identify a school that is the right fit for you.  For up-to-date hiring communication that may affect you, please routinely visit our announcements page.

- In addition to the services offered to teachers in excess, the Teaching Hiring Support Center organizes Closing/Phasing-Out School Job Search Preparation Fairs. These are events where you will have the opportunity to participate in consultations with NYCDOE recruitment staff, attend live job-search workshops, and undergo a personalized resume review.  As with all of our events, you will receive an invitation via email.

Visit our FAQ page where you may find the answers to questions you may have. You can also email us at thsc@schools.nyc.gov or contact our phonebank at 718-935-5280. [Top of Page] 

Transfer Teachers

The Open Market Transfer System is open during the transfer period (April 15 to August 7) in which all existing NYCDOE teachers, including teachers in excess and teachers at closing or phasing-out schools, can search for a new teaching position and transfer schools.  The NYCDOE encourages teachers who are considering transferring to a new school to consider all options available to them.  With almost 1,600 programs and schools, we are confident there is a school that you can identify to meet your needs.  

*Please note, that after the close of the Open Market Transfer period, OMTS becomes the Excess Staffing Selection System (ESSS) and only excess teachers will be granted access to view and apply to posted vacancies.

- To search for vacancies, you should register and apply via the Open Market Hiring System.

Only apply to schools that you are sincerely interested in.  Submitting a resume with a blanket / generic cover letter to each school will kill your job search.  For more information on your job search and applying to vacancies, we encourage you to visit our Navigating your Job Search page. [Top of Page]  

Recruitment Events and Workshops

All recruitment events coordinated by the Office of TRQ recruitment events are by invitation only and require pre-registration. You will receive an invitation based on your subject area as well as hiring needs within the NYCDOE.  In order to potentially receive an email invitation to scheduled events for your borough and subject area if applicable, we must have a current email on file that you check regularly.  Please register with the Open Market Hiring System to provide updated email and phone contact information. 

For information regarding upcoming recruitment events and workshops, please visit our events page. [Top of Page]