RISD HR report: teacher turnover drops to about 11.5% as retention and benefits ramp up

Doctor Goodson presented Richardson ISD's annual human‑resources update, telling trustees the district's investments in teacher compensation and supports have increased staff experience and reduced teacher turnover. "Over a 2‑year period, we've gone from 17.4 to 11.54 teacher turnover rate," she said, adding state‑calculated turnover (which counts teachers who leave the classroom for other district roles) also improved.

Goodson highlighted benefits and supports that staff and trustees credited for retention gains: on‑site/partnered acute‑care clinics at Methodist Richardson (more than 500 visits this year), a mental‑wellness clinic partnership (about 456 sessions), expanded sick‑leave bank use (522.5 days), and child‑learning academies serving 221 children. She also reviewed the district's teacher‑incentive allotment (TIA) local model and growing National Board Certification participation (from 7 to 14 designated teachers), and noted TIA allotments are managed so teachers receive up to 90% of generated funds.

Trustees asked practical questions about implementation: how TIA cohorts are supported (cohort model, sub days, mentoring), workload for National Board candidates (multi‑year, outside hours plus district supports), eligibility and outreach for benefit programs (clinic access for all employees regardless of insurance), and recruitment reach (district attends job fairs across Texas and neighboring states). Staff said they will provide additional survey and campus‑level data as follow‑up.

Goodson and trustees framed the HR achievements as supporting the district's "North Star" goals while cautioning that sustaining gains will require continued fiscal prioritization as budget pressures grow.