Does New York Have A Pending Teacher Shortage?

Summer is unofficially here and that means that there are thousands of people who are really looking forward to something, summer vacation.

Both teachers and students have worked hard all school year to get to June and it's finally time for them to take a quick 3 month break.

While pupils and educators alike are looking forward to summer break, parents statewide are rolling their eyes now that the kids are going to be home and potentially bored. There are tons of activities that kids can get into this summer and we've got a nice list for you here to check out.

With the coming end of school, it's not all good for everyone. The arrival of summer is a time for school administrators and school boards to get to work to make sure things are in place for the next school year, and for many places across New York, that means finding new teachers to staff classrooms.

New York Has A Major Teacher Shortage

For years school administrators and other government officials have been ringing the alarm about school districts have problems hiring enough qualified teachers. The issue is so profound that in 2022, officials estimated that New York would need more than 180,000 new teachers over the next few years in order to avoid a crisis.

Far more must be done to help New York's school system overcome the challenges that existed before and were exacerbated by the pandemic... We must do more to support students and teachers in our state and encourage a new generation to enter the field of education so that New York never again faces the chronic staffing shortages we are seeing today.
-Kathy Hochul, Governor of New York State

Why Is There A Teacher Shortage In New York

There are several reasons why New York is running short on teachers.

Currently it's a combination of long term teachers who have been in the workforce for several years getting ready for retirement, a decrease in the amount of students enrolling in teacher education programs, and trouble navigating the states teacher certificate process rank among the top reasons for the staffing shortages.

What Is New York Doing About The Teacher Shortage?

State officials have been making changes in Albany to make it easier to qualify teachers, along with providing some incentives to lure retired teachers back into the workforce.

In many places across the state, school districts have been renegotiating their labor contracts in an attempt to help retain teachers who might be considering leaving teaching, along with making it more attractive for new teachers to enter the profession.

Read More: Buffalo Schools and Teachers Agree On New Contract

More information about what New York is doing can be found here.

Since the children are our future, let's hope New York figures it out.