Our nation’s legislators and senators now need to be the ones to solve the teacher shortages that exist for hundreds of thousands of our young students. They need to stand fast instead of “bowing down and/or backing off’ from the political solutions proposed in the state government offices, allowing the universities to thwart their efforts.
Community and technical colleges are strongly pressured not to offer bachelor’s degrees in education. This continues while the country’s K12 schools live with a 55,000-teacher shortage and 270,000 non-certified persons working in classrooms nationwide during 2024-2025.
The following states provide a sample where the university systems appear to have the ‘final say’ on what community college baccalaureate degrees need to be:
- California: Community colleges seeking to establish baccalaureate degrees must consult with four-year universities to ensure their proposed programs are not duplicative. They must be unique and not duplicate or compete with California’s four-year universities.
- Washington: The resistance from the state’s higher education system was strong enough to curtail a program that would have helped overcome some of the state’s teacher shortage problems. Schools serving high numbers of students of color were more likely than the average public school to need math teachers, general elementary teachers, and English teachers for native and non-native students.
- Pennsylvania: This state has seen its certification of new teachers drop from 15,031 during the 2010-2011 school year to 5,624 in 2023-2024, for a decrease of 9,407 certifications. Teachers leaving the field: Close to 7.7% of Pennsylvania teachers left their positions between 2021-2022 and 2022-2023 (Tomasic, 2025).
Rural student university problem
Finding qualified teachers to fill shortages and replace those leaving the profession is more difficult in rural areas. Many rural students are in what is referred to as a “higher education desert,” where universities are 50 miles or further from their home area.
Things have worsened as private rural colleges have disproportionately closed, and public universities have eliminated majors and programs (Dobo, 2024).
One Illinois study found that 75% of the state community college students would pursue a baccalaureate degree if it could be offered at their local community colleges (Miletich, 2025).
An Illinois community college student expressed her desire to accomplish a baccalaureate degree at her community college:
I would much rather earn a bachelor’s degree at my current community college. I do not have any future plans to apply for or complete a bachelor’s degree, but I would 100% consider getting one if it were at my current community college.
In summary
Recent reports show that these severe teacher shortages exist in urban, inner-city, suburban and rural school districts. They also report that the struggle of rural districts may be even more severe than in any other segment of the country.
Berry stated why the community and technical colleges need to be utilized in preparing baccalaureate degree students:
By allowing our community colleges to offer baccalaureate degrees for in-demand career paths, we are making it easier and more affordable for students, particularly working adults in rural communities, to advance their careers, while strengthening our state’s economy (Berry, 2025).
Decades of experience have taught the authors that if something needs to be done for students at the K12 and community college levels, it must be done, even with the resistance often accompanying such change.
Sources:
Berry, M. (2025, February 19). Governor JB Pritzker Announces Support for Community College Baccalaureate Degrees to Strengthen Illinois’ Workforce. Illinois Community College Board. Retrieved April 14, 2025, at https://www.riverbender.com/news/details/governor-jb-pritzker-announces-support-for-community-college-baccalaureate-degrees-to-strengthen-illinois-workforce
Dobo, N. (2024, December 5). What happens to students when rural colleges cut programs and majors? The Hechinger Report. Retrieved March 15, 2025, [email protected]
ICCTA Illinois Community College Student Survey. The Community Colleges of Illinois. Retrieved April 13, 2025 at: https://www.bing.com/search?q=ICCTA+Illinois+Community+College+Student+Survey.++The+Community+Colleges+of+Illinois
Miletich, M. (2025, March 3). Access and opportunity: State lawmakers could allow community college bachelor’s degrees. Wand News. Retrieved April 11, 2025 at: https://www.wandtv.com/news/statehouse/access-and-opportunity-state-lawmakers-could-allow-community-college-bachelors-degrees/article
Reed, J. (2025, March). ICCTA Illinois Community College Student Survey. The Community Colleges of Illinois. Retrieved March 29, 2025 at: Community College Baccalaureate Degrees in Illinois
Tomasic, M. (2025, April 26). Pa. teacher certifications increased last year, but shortage persists. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved April 26, 2025 at:https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/pa-teacher-certifications-increased-last-year-but-shortage-persists/
Authors
Dr. Hans Andrews is a distinguished fellow in community college leadership through Olney Central College (Illinois) and a former college president. He started the first dual-credit program between community colleges and secondary schools in the country.
Dr. Greg Rockhold, a former Superintendent, has served on the National Association of Secondary School Principals board as president of the New Mexico Coalition of School Administrators and executive director of the New Mexico Association of Secondary School Principals.
