Horry County Schools looks to fill teacher vacancies with recruitment fair

CONWAY, S.C. (WMBF) - With just a few months left in the current school year, Horry County Schools want to bring in new teachers to fill vacancies in the classroom.

The district is looking to hire Saturday at its annual recruitment fair, adding that it serves as an opportunity to fill between 200 and 250 positions for the next school year. The event will be held at Conway High School from 9:30 a.m. until 3 p.m.

Interviews will also be held and some attendees could possibly walk away from the event with a job offer.

School leaders shared how it will be a beneficial experience for new applicants.

“It’s a family, it really is,” said HCS spokesperson Lisa Bourcier. “I think once they get to know us and get a good feel for a school that really fits them they’ll really feel right at home.”

The family-like atmosphere and enthusiasm are being felt by recent hires such as Alexis Del Castillo, who teaches 6th-grade math and science at Ocean Bay Middle School.

“There’s a high need for teachers. We need educators. We need great educators,” said Del Castillo. “I highly encourage anyone to step into the field because it’s a career where I definitely feel like I’m making an impact on the lives around me every single day.”

Del Castillo recently got to Ocean Bay and said the love he felt in school has to do with the teachers he had throughout his education in Horry County.

“When I was in school, I realized that I really enjoyed helping people with math, so I decided to major in education when I went to college,” he said. “And then I just kind of stuck around in the education field and just completely fell in love with it.”

Del Castillo later graduated from Coastal Carolina University and knew he wanted to give back to the community where he got his start.

“So whenever I go home and I’m a little tired, I wear it with pride because that means I’m actually doing something with my life I’m doing something that I’m happy with,” he said.

And for all his efforts, the district recently named Del Castillo the 2023 Rookie Teacher of the Year.

“I come to school every day, I try to give them 100% of me,” he said. “I make sure that all my kids feel welcomed and loved and supported. To me, I teach the content that they need to learn but it’s so much more than just the subject itself. It’s about reaching the kids on a personal level showing them that I’m here for them that that I love them that I care about them it’s about just making good fun positive memories that I know that they will carry on with them.”

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