The La Mesa-Spring Valley School District has long offered a significant benefit to its full-time staff: child care at no cost for staff with children in the district.
As the nation’s hiring challenges continue, the district is putting added emphasis on this benefit to attract staff for various positions, including paraprofessionals, child nutrition, and transportation staff.
“Child care is a significant cost to many parents seeking work,” says Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources Dr. Meg Jacobsen. “We want prospective team members to know that we offer a solution to this in a wonderful work environment,
“As a parent who benefits from this myself,” says Jacobsen, “I can tell you that it puts me at ease every day to know the high level of care my kids receive while I’m at work.”
The district has nearly 300 children of staff members in its ESS program (Extended School Services) receiving learning-enriched child care. The program as a whole has over 2,100 students enrolled.
La Mesa-Spring Valley’s ESS program is known throughout the county for innovative and exciting programs that serve the academic and social-emotional needs of its students. Children who attend ESS explore new hobbies and skills and build relationships in an engaging environment.
Says Deann Ragsdale, Assistant Superintendent of Educational Services, “ESS is one of the best ways for our students to kick off their morning and a great way to end their day. They benefit from adults who care about them and who provide supportive, loving, and engaging environments for our children.“
Kate Cheney is a Program Manager for Special Education in the district. She has 2 children in the ESS program. “My girls look forward to their after-school time and rarely want to leave. The ESS staff make us feel like an extended family. You can tell that they genuinely care for my children. As an employee, the ESS program allows me the peace of mind to be at work and know my children are loved and well cared for.”
The district is currently hiring for a variety of positions across a variety of departments. Of those, all positions offer the child care benefit, including substitute roles when the subs are working.
People interested in learning more should review the district’s current job openings, which can be found here.