ENCINITAS, Calif. (KGTV) — A North County school is launching a new experiment to help teachers who are struggling to afford housing in San Diego.
The Grauer School is using recently acquired land near its Encinitas campus to offer homes at affordable rents to new hires.
“I don’t want to wait until we already can’t get people. The time is now to act," school founder Stuart Grauer told ABC 10News.
Grauer says that in the last few years, he's noticed that prospective hires are finding it harder and harder to find housing. “I find myself driving around town in the summer, pulling my hair out trying to find a place for them to live," Grauer said.
At the same time, Grauer had been working on a plan to build new athletics facilities. But he began to question whether that was the best use for the land.
Instead, he pitched the school's board a plan to keep the home and two ADUs currently on the land, fix them up, and offer them to new teachers.
Three units will be available in 2024. If the program is a hit, there is enough room on the property to build three more. The teachers will rent the units for an affordable percentage of their salary.
Grauer says the hope is that by saving money on rent and gas to commute to campus, the teachers will be able to save up enough money within three years to be able to move into a place of their own.
“I think this is a really great generational opportunity to do something for the world’s noblest profession," Grauer said.
When Grauer began to research the idea, he found that offering faculty housing is a growing trend, including at some of the best-known schools in the country. However, he thinks public schools should be looking into the idea, as well.
In 2022, ABC 10News reported that San Diego Unified was considering using bond money to build faculty housing on district-owned land in University Heights.
“It’s clear that the future is going to require this as school leaders do everything possible to get great people into this profession," Grauer said.
