St. Paul Public Schools wants to hire more than 200 teachers and teacher aides for the next academic year. And the state's second-largest school district is setting aside $1.3 million in hiring and retention bonuses to get there.

District leaders are specifically hoping to fill 70 special-education positions for the fall. Those spots come with a $10,000 bonus paid out over three years. Executive Chief of Human Resources Patricia Pratt-Cook said about 17% of the district's students qualify for special-education services and called the bonuses a "proactive step to ensure our students have the best educators in the state."

"Our students deserve nothing less, and in this competitive job market, we need to do everything we can to attract the best candidates to our classrooms," she said.

https://www.startribune.com/st-paul-public-schools-dangles-1-3-million-in-hiring-retention-bonuses-in-special-education/600260659/