New Online Marketplace Plays Matchmaker To Teachers And Schools

PRLog (Press Release) - Mar. 21, 2013 - NEW ORLEANS -- Haystack EDU today announced the initial launch of its groundbreaking new online marketplace linking teachers and schools in the United States through a detailed profile and reciprocal interest system.

Providing an efficient and effective way to pair educators and learning institutions, the system’s early focus helps bridge the gap between qualified teachers and the 600,000 open teaching positions (http://www.haystackedu.com/) available to them every year. The service is especially relevant today, as public school hiring practices are shifting from a centralized district-based model to decentralized, school-based hiring – giving teachers and schools more autonomy in their choices.

“We’re essentially matchmakers,” explains Haystack EDU founder and New Orleans-based Teach For America alum and recruiter Tom Hayes. “Candidates and schools can indicate their interest through the site, and then decide whether to forge a relationship based on mutual objectives and qualifications.”

Through a partnership with GreatSchools, the leading national source of school performance information for parents, Haystack EDU will provide profiles on all 130,000 U.S. primary and secondary schools. And while currently focused on full-time job placement, Haystack EDU plans to add professional development, leadership, and summer teaching opportunities later this year.

Over the long term, Haystack EDU will become the central point for teachers to represent themselves as professionals. “The emergence of technology-driven personalized learning means the teaching profession has the propensity for significant change,” Hayes explains. “We believe traditional teaching roles will become much more specialized, giving teachers increasing opportunities to differentiate themselves from their peers. Haystack EDU will help teachers make this exciting transition. As the first organization of its kind to take this on, it’s exciting to be on the forefront of something so game changing.” In fact, some studies project that by 2019, 50 percent of all high school courses will be delivered online.

Haystack EDU notes its service will remain completely free for teachers. After completing a profile detailing their educational background and competencies, candidates gain access to a database of every accredited k-12 school in the United States. Schools have the option of paying either a per-hire placement or subscription fee to the site.  Approximately 35 school organizations including Tennessee’s Achievement School District and a number of KIPP networks – including KIPP New Orleans – already have signed on with Haystack EDU’s subscription and pay-per-placement plans.

There are other ways Haystack EDU differs from standard job board and headhunter models of teacher recruitment. Job boards, for example, typically lack the informational depth necessary to evaluate an educator’s potential for success in a particular school model. And headhunter services can be both costly and largely dependent on the recruiter’s personal network.

For more information about Haystack EDU, visit www.haystackedu.com. The company also may be found on Facebook at Haystack EDU or on Twitter @haystackedu.

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About Haystack EDU Founder Tom Hayes:

Haystack EDU was founded in 2012 by former educator and teacher recruiter Tom Hayes, and was incubated through New Orleans-based non-profit organizations 4.0 Schools and The Idea Village. Tom began his career teaching high school mathematics in New Orleans, LA through Teach For America. He went on to manage the organization’s Louisiana recruitment campaign before being named managing director of development for the greater New Orleans region, where he raised more than $17 million in just two years. Tom holds an MBA and MA in Education from Stanford University.