Looking for an alternative, the school district in Louisville, Ky., turned to a software program—leading to chaos. It’s one of many districts struggling to get students to class.
"We’re excited and maybe a little bit nervous," Hardin County Schools Superintendent Teresa Morgan says as she and her team get ready to make room for an influx of 24,000 to 37,000 residents over the next decade.
Many teachers simply can't afford to live where they work, which can have repercussions for the quality of students' education, Becky Pringle, president of the National Education Association, told Axios.
A USA TODAY analysis of news coverage and local statistics found at least one instance of a major school bus driver shortage in every state this year, from Hawaii to New York.
The keyword as students head back to school in Alaska's Mat-Su Borough School District is "STAR." Actually, it's an acronym—but not one of the really dull ones.
Students most in need of well-qualified teachers are also less likely to be enrolled in schools that provide quality teachers, the report found. And the number of under qualified teachers increases at schools with higher rates of students of color.
Amazing things happen in the lives of students when families and educators join forces, says Superintendent Marvin Connelly Jr. of Cumberland County Schools.
"They're looking for quantity and not quality," Houston Federation of Teachers President Jackie Anderson told KHOU regarding Houston ISD's suggestion to hire uncertified teachers to fill vacancies.
With only half of the 1,300 drivers needed to transport students who require bus service, Chicago said it will instead prioritize transportation for students with disabilities and those experiencing homelessness.
In small, rural districts like Modoc Joint Unified in Alturas, a cattle ranching town of 2,700, being short even a few teachers can send a school spiraling.
