As the K-12 teacher shortage increases across the U.S., including in Kansas, school districts are looking for answers on how to recruit and keep teachers. In Kansas, organizations including the Educator Perceptions and Insights Center are educating school districts one by one. EPIC is trying to combat the 31% increase in teachers leaving the profession from 2020 to 2022, which resulted in a projected economic impact of $49 million due to teacher turnover, the organization said. As of 2022, there were 55,000 teacher vacancies nationwide, as reported by Teacher Shortages in the U.S. In Kansas, the number of shortages from 2022 to 2023 was more than 1,600, with a profession dropout rate of 11% after the 2021-22 school year, the Teacher Shortages website reported. As of October 2022, 18% of all public schools had at least one vacancy and more than one quarter had more vacancies, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. EPIC and Emporia State University, in collaboration with the Kansas National Education Association, Kansas Association of School Boards and the United School Administrators-Kansas, surveyed approximately 60% — or 24,000 respondents — of K-12 Kansas educators. The average age of those surveyed was 43, with 44% classified as Generation X and 38% being millennials. The majority of those surveyed have worked in more than one district. What the survey found is teachers are looking for a number of items, including higher pay and support. The support includes help with finding substitute teachers, more mental-health services, more planning time, more development opportunities and better leadership on school boards.
Source: Wichita Business Journal
