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Novato Unified School District

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Workforce Housing

Education Workforce Housing

Novato Unified School District wants to be viewed as a destination district for employees who want to be part of our commitment to engage, inspire and empower all students.

 

The logo for Novato Unified School District features a colorful starburst design and the words 'Novato Unified School District'.

A well-maintained apartment building with a landscaped courtyard.

What is Education Workforce Housing?

Attracting and retaining talented employees who share our vision to engage, inspire, and empower students is essential to student success. However, three key challenges make this increasingly difficult:

  • Public Education Funding – Unreliable state funding limits our ability to offer salaries that reflect the high cost of living in Marin.
  • Staffing & Teacher Shortages – School districts across the state face a growing educator shortage due to changing workforce demographics. A significant portion of the education workforce is nearing retirement, while fewer individuals are entering the teaching profession. This trend makes it even more critical for NUSD to differentiate itself as an employer of choice.
  • Cost of Living & Commuting – Many employees face long commutes because housing near our schools is unaffordable. This impacts their ability to fully participate in after-school programs, student activities, and the broader school community.

 Recognizing these challenges, the Board of Trustees has committed to exploring education workforce housing as one of the solutions. Using dedicated resources to assess its feasibility thoroughly, we remain optimistic about making it a reality.

 We see Education Workforce Housing, tailored to meet the specific needs of our district and community, as one of several strategies to attract, support, and retain exceptional employees. By investing in housing solutions, we can strengthen connections between staff, students, and families, ensuring a more engaged and stable workforce for years to come.

To address these challenges, the Board of Education made a commitment to explore the possibility of workforce housing, and at this time, we have dedicated resources to take a deep dive into the subject, which we are optimistic that we can make happen.

We see workforce housing, customized to meet our needs and to fit into our community, as one of several strategies being used to retain, attract and employ exceptional and dedicated talent.

Workforce HOUSING Newsletter and sign up

Latest Newsletters

(Newsletter links take you off-site to Parentsquare our newlsetter provider)

Newsletter Sign Up

Click the link below to sign up and receive future Education Workforce Housing Newsletters – (sign up occurs off-site on Parentquare.com)

(select the “Community – Housing Newsletter for Education Workforce Housing updates)

In the Media

Committee Members

Ross Guehring Community Member, Business
Jerry Peters Community Member, Business
Cheryl Paddack Community Member, Business
Tammy Sanchez Parent Representative, District English Learner Advisory Committee
Brianda Sosa Parent Representative, District English Learner Advisory Committee
Erin Compton Parent Representative, Parent Teacher Association
Don Nicodemus Classified Employee Representative
Monica Velasquez-Lopez Classified Employee Representative
Mariah Fisher Certificated Employee Representative
Liz Nelson Certificated Employee Representative
Juliette Jones NUSD Site Administrator
Tracy Smith NUSD Superintendent
Joshua Braff NUSD Financial Officer
Francesca Whitcomb NUSD Human Resources
Debbie Butler NUSD Board Trustee
Diane Gasson NUSD Board Trustee
Julie Jacobson NUSD Board Trustee

A Multi-Year Process & Where We Are Now

The multi-year process is divided into six phases and begins with a commitment to dedicate the necessary resources to thoroughly examine the possibility of education workforce housing.

The Preliminary Exploration and Feasibility Study phases have been completed and we are in the first steps of the Development phase.

Currently, no specific sites or construction plans have been proposed or decided on as we are only at the beginning of the Development stage.

A timeline outlining the stages of a school project, with the 'Development' stage highlighted as the current phase.

“…a destination district for employees who want to be part of our commitment to engage, inspire and empower all students.”


WHY?
Workforce housing is part of a broad District effort to attract and retain great people.

To attract and retain high quality education professionals and support service professionals we are working to create a culture that cares for its employees, allowing them to engage their voice and professional expertise in service to students; they must be inspired to be possibility thinkers so that we are continuously improving; and they must be empowered to add their voices and opinions. Some of the things that we provide to make NUSD a great place to teach and work:

  • New teacher support (induction) program through Sonoma County Office of Education
  • Paid professional development
  • Paid professional learning time (collaboration with colleagues at the grade, site, and district levels)
  • Partner program with Sonoma State University for dual immersion and English language teachers
  • Recruitment Fairs
  • Social Media recruitment