February 19, 2026
This past fall, Berkeley School of Education Assistant Dean Rebecca Cheung and Adjunct Professor Özge Hacıfazlıoğlu mentored three undergraduate students, Elias Antunez, Erick Hidalgo, and Celine Rouabah, in EDSTEM C122: Research Methods for Science and Mathematics K–12 Teachers, guiding them through a seven-week investigation examining how salary structures influence the recruitment of entry-level administrators in hard-to-staff districts in the Bay Area. The course equips future educators with essential skills in statistical analysis, mathematical modeling, and research writing. The students applied these skills to address a pressing question facing several hard-to-staff school districts: Who can afford to become a school administrator?
The students analyzed salary schedules from six Bay Area districts. Three were classified as hard-to-staff and three served as comparators, standardizing annual salaries into daily pay rates to ensure accurate comparisons across roles with different work calendars. To ensure parity, only districts with similar funding levels were selected. Their analysis revealed important disparities that illuminated how compensation impacts retention. For example, on average, teachers in the hard-to-staff districts earned 10–25% less and principals earned 15–40% less than comparison districts. More alarmingly, the students concluded that experienced teachers in hard-to-staff districts would experience minimal financial gains when moving into an entry level administrative role such as assistant principal. In some districts, late-career teachers would experience only nominal increases, close to $10,000 annually in some cases, despite taking on substantially greater responsibility and longer workdays. In other words, their take home pay would increase primarily due to a longer work day and work year, rather than increased hourly pay. Their conclusion was that in hard-to-staff districts, limited incentives may weaken leadership pipelines and contribute to ongoing instability. This is concerning, given that hard-to-staff districts often face other persistent challenges that are impacted by staffing shortages and turnover such as lower student achievement.
In hard-to-staff districts, limited incentives may weaken leadership pipelines and contribute to ongoing instability, even as the same districts face other persistent challenges.
As a culminating activity, the students presented at a campus poster session (pictured) that drew strong praise from faculty and peers and exemplified the power of mentoring undergraduates. Through the guidance of Drs. Rebecca Cheung and Özge Hacıfazlıoğlu, the students learned how research can inform practice and contribute to more equitable systems of educational leadership.
Reflecting on the experience, course instructor Sagit Betser said: “Engaging in research on such a timely issue was incredibly valuable for our students. They collaborated, peer-reviewed one another’s work, and presented their findings at a campus poster session. Students spoke very highly of their experience working with the faculty mentors.”
As mentor Dr. Hacıfazlıoğlu noted: “Working with talented undergraduate students at Berkeley through courses and the undergraduate research apprenticeship program has been very rewarding and fulfilling as a mentor and scholar. As the Berkeley School of Education grows its undergraduate major program, I look forward to working with more undergraduates in the years to come.”
Dr. Cheung spoke to the broader significance of engaging in undergraduate mentorship: “As education leadership researchers, it's important to do our part to encourage Berkeley undergrads to become California’s brightest teachers, leaders, and scholars in public education.”
Undergraduate researchers and Professor Özge Hacıfazlıoğlu presenting at the poster session