Faculty Turnover Rates Increase from Recent Years

Six senior leaders plan to leave Deerfield this year—among a series of other faculty and staff members—mirroring a national trend of increasing faculty turnovers since the 1990s. 

According to the Learning Policy Institute, faculty turnover rates today in the United States are about 27% higher than two decades ago, and nearly three in four teachers who decide to leave a position choose for reasons other than retirement. 

At the Academy, faculty turnovers and the process of welcoming new members to the team are bringing the Student Life Office this spring to reflect upon the Academy and education more broadly.

This tendency of multiple faculty members choosing another path and aiming to continue their professional growth beyond the Academy has been observed in other boarding schools as well over the past decade. Dean of Faculty Patrick Andren, who worked at three other boarding schools before coming to Deerfield, said, “These are just natural absences in the lives of school.” 

But by the end of this year, close to 30 faculty members will leave the Academy, almost double faculty turnovers last year. Instead of narrowing perspectives on the losses solely, Associate Head of School for Student Life Amie Creagh looked at the phenomenon as an opportunity for staying colleagues to improve and move into the vacant positions. “You're bringing up the next kind of homegrown set of leaders,” she said.

While Dean of Residential Life, 12th Grade Dean Becca Melvoin and Dean of Students Samuel Bicknell are leaving and moving to their next tier of leadership, current 9th Grade Dean Heather Brown will move up as the new Dean of Students, and International Student Advisor Lina Al Samawi as the new Dean of Residential Life. 

"[This is a] unique opportunity for the school to continue to bring in colleagues and leaders who have a clear understanding of what Deerfield can offer us as employees and what Deerfield can then offer students,” said Mr. Andren.

During the process of hiring new employees, the SLO carried out orientations and in-person conversations on campus to help make their transition smoother. Ms. Creagh said, “Each year we go through a hiring cycle, we are forced to articulate to prospective colleagues who we are and what we offer as a school.”

A week-long orientation program is dedicated to integrating new hires into life at the Academy. Keeping all the information in mind, Mr. Andren noted one point that is especially crucial for new colleagues to recall. “To make sure that you know the people, and to know that these people are invested in your success, is the number one thing you can do is to ask for help when you need it.”

Oral introductions to the school bridge prospective faculty to the new environment well, but it’s usually the community that leads new members to the final decision of coming to the Academy. Mr. Andren said, “The people who get closer and closer to Deerfield are struck more and more by just how powerful that community is, how much energy you all bring every day to everything you do.”

New members bring fresh viewpoints and questions that prompt innovations in education at the Academy. According to Mr. Andren, new folks ask questions about the purpose of each school decision as they are not familiar with how everything works at the Academy yet. Ms. Creagh said, “New colleagues are really good at asking the question: Why do you do it that way? And we have to be really clear with an answer when someone asks that question.”

Answering these inquiries allows the SLO team to understand their mission with more depths. Mr. Andren said, “ [They] really explore how we think to create the best for students. This influx of folks helps us do that.”

Besides entering a different educational environment, new members are also choosing a new lifestyle. Ms. Creagh said, “When one makes the lifestyle decision to work in a boarding school, you're bringing one, two, three, four, other people into that decision.” To support the faculty families, the Academy created the Early Learning Center that nurtures kids from infancy to preschool regarding their basic education, critical thinking, and independence.

Along this cycle of faculty coming and leaving, members of the SLO experienced emotions of loss and welcome. As Mr. Andren said, “Everybody who's part of this process wants to make sure that you all have a faculty who look at the best for you.”