The Lewiston School District’s ability to retain teachers has shown a marked improvement over the past three years, Superintendent Jake Langlais told the School Committee during Monday’s meeting.

From a high point of 1 of every 3 teachers — 32.76% — in 2022, the turnover rate dropped to 13.11% for the fiscal year that ended in 2025, a decline of nearly 60%.

“We saw a spike in turnover a few years ago and now it’s trending back,” Langlais said. “This is the third consecutive year that we’re moving in the right direction. Hopefully we’ll continue to see that.”

The rate has dropped steadily for the past few years. The turnover rate in 2023 was 25.17%, while the 2024 rate was 18.49%.

Langlais noted that some turnover cannot be avoided, such as retirements and teachers moving away, but he is pleased with the overall downward trend.

“I do think that we’ve done a good job of doing what we can taking care of people, and I think that matters,” he said. “We’re trying to take a family approach as much as we can when people face hardships and help them through those situations.”

The school district will see increased savings from an improved retention rate. Less training of new staff and fewer background tests will be required, Langlais noted.

School committee member Elizabeth Eames said it appeared that the retention of special education technicians was a problem area.

“Special ed in general is a challenging area to hire,” Langlais said.

Committee member Meghan Hird suggested that hiring a separate special education coach similar to the academic coaches already working in the system could be helpful. Langlais said his staff is already considering such a move, which could be included in next year’s budget.