Babcock Ranch parents voice concerns on teacher turnover at high school

BABCOCK RANCH, Fla. — Parents with students at Babcock High School are voicing concerns about teacher turnover and classroom staffing.

Some say substitute teachers are leading several classes, raising questions about consistency in their children’s education.

One parent, John Mills, spoke with WINK News about his frustration. His daughter is a freshman at the school.

"As a parent, it's been extremely frustrating. I've had a straight A student with that she was National Junior Honor Society with an old school before we moved on to Florida. Now I got a daughter that has panic attacks, does not like school, is not getting the education she would want or need," said Mills.

He described a staffing shortage and noted that some classes are being led by substitute teachers.

"You have amount of substitute teachers, giving them a packet and having them learn a packet, and then that's it, and then they're taking a bunch of state mandated tests to see how much they know what. Half these kids are not getting taught anything," said Mills.

Jennifer Patterson, another parent at Babcock Ranch, shared similar concerns regarding Babcock Neighborhood School, which serves middle school students.

"Every single day, both my children are telling me that they are not teaching. My daughter was having an issue with an eighth grade teacher, now they're saying that he was fired or he just quit," said Patterson.

Her daughter, Payton Patterson, a middle school student at Babcock Neighborhood School, says she has noticed the frequent changes in teachers.

"There's not a lot of teachers. There's like, every day, it was a different sub," said Patterson.

In a statement to WINK News, Babcock Schools said:

Babcock Schools is a high performing charter and a Project Based Learning (PBL) environment which requires a high level of commitment from the teacher to know their content and to understand the PBL instructional strategy.

The educators in our building are dedicated to designing and delivering high-level project-based learning experiences. They actively engage with instructional coaches and collaborate with colleagues to continuously refine their craft.

To protect and strengthen this culture of excellence, we will continue to hold a high bar for every new hire.

We are not immune to the national teacher shortage. However, we will not compromise our standards. We remain committed to hiring highly qualified educators who are the right fit for our students and our instructional expectations.

When a teacher is out, our administration partners with instructional teams to ensure that curriculum delivery continues without disruption. Babcock Schools has 67 total instructional positions and a student population of 1, 268.

There are two current vacancies across grades K-12 and two vacancies in the process of onboarding. When vacancies occur, we post the position and actively work to hire candidates who are the right fit for our school community.