Epic teachers looking for work after layoffs hit last week

Last week, Epic Charter Schools announced they will not renew the contracts of 350 teachers for the next school year, leaving those teachers scrambling to find a job.

Epic Charter Schools made sweeping changes to their teaching model, and some teachers lives were turned upside down. In November, Epic laid off nearly 150 employees but retained several hundred to finish out the current school year and to prepare for the 2025-26 school year, starting in the fall.

“I made it through that one (in November),” said a teacher that wishes to remain anonymous. “So, we were under the impression that was it. That was all of the cuts that were going to be made.”

However, last week saw another round of cuts.

She cannot speak publicly because Epic employees were told they cannot speak to the media while under contract. The current contracts and paychecks will end June 30.

The Epic teacher, who just bought a house and operates on a single income, is now without a job after she was a part of a zoom meeting that discussed the school’s future in a positive way. She then received a termination or non-renewal email the following day.

The teacher said without one-on-one learning, some students won’t graduate high school. She has 22 years of teaching experience, 16 years in public schools.

“It was my first or second year (at Epic), I had a (student) who was a whole year behind when she came to me, and I had to hold her hand and stay on top of her. I had meetings with her mom constantly. It took a lot of my time and the mom’s time. I got her caught up and she graduated on time. Her mom then sent me a letter and said this would’ve never happened had she stayed in a brick and mortar (school),” she said.

She was strictly teaching remotely which was a new position created when she first started with Epic. There were teachers that did remote work as well as teaching students in a learning center setting. This teacher was strictly remote, using a one-on-one method with students that were struggling.

The teacher just bought a new house, has a relatively new car, and a new grandchild that she was going to watch while her daughter was at work.