Parental pressure appears to have played a major role in the sudden departure of the superintendent of North Monterey County USD in California and in a number of other districts.
Pandemic relief funds have been a game changer for districts desperate for the resources necessary to continue high-quality instruction amid teacher shortages and other issues. But leaders' spending habits will change once these funds run dry, a new survey suggests.
The School District of Philadelphia will pay parents $300 to drive their child to school instead of taking the bus. The program could help combat bus driver shortages.
At least 30% of Missouri school districts are leveraging this model in an effort to better recruit and retain teachers amid an ongoing shortage. Arkansas and Ohio are jumping on the bandwagon as well—and it's working.
There are various ways to measure the problem schools are facing. The Professional Educator Licensing and Licensing Standards Board (PELSB) found in its 2023 report that between 80-90 percent of Minnesota districts were significantly impacted by teacher and substitute shortages. It also found that nearly a third of new educators are leaving teaching within the first five years of the profession.
Districts also tend to assign teachers without formal training to the highest-needs schools, attended by many students of color and those who live in poverty, says Heather Peske, president of the National Council on Teacher Quality.
"Time is running out," reads a new report from The Education Trust. Districts have millions of ESSER dollars left to spend. Some have managed these funds poorly. Here's how to ensure you're prepared once these resources are eliminated.
“Everybody across the nation has been dealing with teacher shortages for several years, and our district is not immune to that,” Joe Burke with Fort Mill Schools said.
Support from leadership is crucial as inflation, coupled with already low salaries, is making it even more difficult for educators to afford to live in their own school district. Here's what the data says.
Schools in Missouri are still rebounding from the pandemic's impact on student learning. State education leaders say they're also grappling with student mental health issues, chronic absenteeism and teacher shortages.
