(Part one of two parts)
SPRINGFIELD — Seven years after its debut, Illinois’ popular and comprehensive study shows persistent teacher shortages statewide with concerning disparities across the state. Schools also are showing a variety of solutions at the local and state levels are helping them ease the strain on classroom instruction.
The Illinois Association of Regional Superintendents of Schools (IARSS), representing the leaders of Regional Offices of Education and Intermediate Service Centers in all 102 Illinois counties, again partnered with Goshen Education Consulting for a fall 2023 survey of more than 750 school districts statewide on the key questions around the depth and consequences of Illinois’ teacher shortage crisis.
IARSS leaders say these latest results show school leaders and policymakers are determined to work tirelessly and creatively to address the many causes of teacher shortages, even as some problems prove challenging to overcome. The full results are available at https://iarss.org/.
“Our annual study has become a tremendous resource for educators, legislators and state officials to understand the depth of this persistent problem and the ways we all are working to make progress in solving it,” said Gary Tipsord, IARSS Executive Director.
“As we have said year after year, our shortages are the result of generations of factors that we cannot resolve immediately. But as this latest study shows, we have challenges ahead to address concerning disparities in how this problem is affecting our schools and many dedicated people who devote effort every day to addressing the problem in creative ways while providing the best education possible for every child who steps inside a classroom in Illinois.
TOP RESULTS
Illinois school districts report the teacher shortage problem persists and forces schools to be more creative to address it:
More than 90 percent of schools say they have a serious or very serious teacher shortage problem
93 percent of schools say they struggle to fill substitute teacher openings
88 percent of school leaders report having fewer than five – and sometimes zero – applicants for open teaching positions
Teacher shortages are seen as most severe in special education and career technical education
School psychologists, speech-language pathologists, and nurses create the most prominent school support personnel shortages
Teacher shortages are the most severe in city districts, in vocational centers, and in more rural parts of Illinois such as west-central, southwest and east-central Illinois
73 percent of school leaders say half or less of their teacher candidates have the proper credentials for the position they are seeking
DEEPER INSIDE THE SHORTAGE TRENDS
Each year, the IARSS-Goshen survey asks school leaders to provide detailed insight into the educator shortages they are experiencing, how their shortages are impacting the education they provide their students, and the various ways they are pursuing solutions to adjust to their reality and prepare for a better tomorrow.
The latest results reveal while there are broader trends that all schools are seeing, there are many differences across districts for both the problems and effective solutions. For example, nearly 70 percent of all schools report serious or very serious problems with shortages, but that number drops to as little as 20 percent of schools in some more affluent counties.
The leading causes of teacher shortages vary greatly across the state. Collectively, schools report they mostly see shortages from employee burnout and increased responsibilities, with teachers leaving for better pay in another career. Their open positions are often from resignations by educators to teach at other districts or resignations for a different profession – underscoring the competitive nature of school districts all grappling with similar shortage challenges.
School leaders report a number of solutions are helping improve educator recruitment and retention:
Improved working conditions
Placing student teachers in their districts
Supporting paraprofessional support staff to go through proper licensing through financial support
Offering additional pay or benefits to keep educators
At the state level, school leaders report teacher shortage issues have eased by changes from the Illinois State Board of Education and state legislators such as increasing the number of days retired educators and substitute teachers can be in classrooms, and providing additional state funding that allowed them to hire more help. They recommend improving pensions, providing more loan forgiveness, and supporting teacher prep candidates in chronic shortage areas as new ways policymakers can further relieve the shortage stresses.
Looking back at previous IARSS shortage studies, the reported severity of teacher shortages overall is steady from 2023, but still increased from what was reported in 2018. Schools are filling positions with alternative licensing and other measures much more frequently now.
WHAT’S NEXT
Each year, IARSS and its survey partners re-evaluate the major challenges still driving the shortage crisis and how best to address it – both in the short term and for the long run. Some policy recommendations in the 2023-2024 include:
Continue to increase state funding for K-12 schools
Release more data more quickly on the evolving educator pipeline to drive strong policy decisions and help school hiring managers find good teaching candidates
Invest in teacher and school leadership
Help create new opportunities for school support staff to become classroom teachers
Focus on acute shortage needs with mentoring and administrative support, and financial incentives
IARSS 2023-2024 teacher shortage survey results overview
OVERVIEW
91 percent of districts report problems with teacher shortages
73 percent of districts report less than 50 percent of teacher applicants have proper credentials for the position they are seeking
52 percent of districts report employee burnout for working conditions is a major or significant factor for teacher shortages
TEACHERS
84 percent of school leaders surveyed indicated they have a serious or very serious problem with teacher shortages
The shortage perception ranges greatly across the state – 20 percent in some counties, up to 100 percent in others
56 percent of school leaders say half or less of their teacher candidates have the proper credentials for the position they are seeking
88 percent of school leaders say they received none or very few (under five) applicants for their open teaching positions
Leading causes of teacher shortages:
54 percent: employee burnout from working conditions
49 percent: better compensation in another profession
48 percent: increased responsibilities
40 percent: limited number of applicants due to district urbanicity
39 percent: better compensation in a neighboring Illinois district
32 percent: limited number of applicants due to district size
Leading causes of teacher open positions:
42 percent: resignations to move districts
26 percent: resignations for a different profession
23 percent: retirement
20 percent: new, permanent positions
18 percent: changed a staff assignment
15 percent: medical leave
23 percent of school leaders reported no unmet need for teachers in 2023-2024 school year. For the remaining 77 percent, leading solutions for unfilled teacher positions were:
348 schools: hired a substitute with a substitute license
287 schools: hired a substitute on a short-term license
261 schools: hired a retiree
224 schools: assigned extra duty to existing employee
151 schools: combined classes
136 schools: increased class sizes
32 percent of school leaders say they did not hire anyone not fully credentialed. For the rest, 381 (56 percent) hired on a short-term approval and 187 (28 percent) hired on a temporary license
SCHOOL SUPPORT PERSONNEL
79 percent of school leaders surveyed indicated they have a serious or very serious problem with school support personnel shortages
The shortage perception ranges greatly across the state – 17 percent in some counties, up to 100 percent in others
59 percent of school leaders say half or less of their school support personnel candidates have the proper credentials for the position they are seeking
94 percent of school leaders say they received none or very few (under five) applicants for their open school support personnel positions
Leading causes of school support personnel shortages:
59 percent: better compensation in another profession
50 percent: better compensation in a neighboring Illinois district
47 percent: employee burnout from working conditions
45 percent: increased responsibilities
41 percent: limited number of applicants due to district urbanicity
37 percent: limited number of applicants due to district size
35 percent: better compensation at a district in a nearby state
Leading causes of school support personnel open positions:
40 percent: resignations to move districts
31 percent: resignations for a different profession
23 percent: new, permanent positions
16 percent: retirement
15 percent: new, temporary positions
14 percent: medical leave
39 percent of school leaders say they had no unmet need for school support personnel. For the remaining 61 percent, leading solutions for school support personnel openings were:
205 schools: outsourced using a third-party vendor
188 schools: assigned extra duty to existing employee
150 schools: hired a retiree
141 schools: shared school support personnel within grade spans
119 schools: shared school support personnel with no distinction
128 schools hired short-term approval credentials for employees to fill school support personnel – 447 schools hired no one not fully credentialed
SPECIAL EDUCATION
81 percent of school leaders surveyed indicated they have a serious or very serious problem with special educator shortages
The shortage perception ranges greatly across the state – 20 percent in some counties, up to 100 percent in others
58 percent of school leaders say half or less of their special educator candidates have the proper credentials for the position they are seeking
85 percent of school leaders say they received none or very few (under five) applicants for their open special educator positions
Leading causes of special educator shortages:
56 percent: employee burnout from working conditions
52 percent: increased responsibilities
46 percent: better compensation in a neighboring Illinois district
40 percent: better compensation in another profession
39 percent: limited number of applicants due to district urbanicity
36 percent: limited number of applicants due to district size
Leading causes of special educator open positions:
42 percent: resignations to move districts
25 percent: new, permanent positions
20 percent: changed a staff assignment to meet student needs
18 percent: resignations for a different profession
18 percent: changed a staff assignment to fill crucial role
16 percent: retirement
44 percent of school leaders reported no unmet need for special educators in 2023-2024 school year. For the remaining 56 percent, leading solutions for unfilled special educator positions were:
179 schools: assigned extra duty to existing employee
175 schools: hired a substitute with a substitute license
148 schools: hired a substitute on a short-term license
146 schools: combined classes
144 schools: increased class sizes
131 schools: hired a retiree
195 schools say they used short-term approval credentials to fill special educator positions, and another 87 schools used temporary licensure. 372 schools say they did not hire anyone not fully credentialed
ADMINISTRATORS
38 percent of school leaders surveyed indicated they have a serious or very serious problem with administrator shortages
The shortage perception ranges greatly across the state – 6 percent in some counties, up to 100 percent in others
28 percent of school leaders say half or less of their administrator candidates have the proper credentials for the position they are seeking
45 percent of school leaders say they received none or very few (under five) applicants for their open administrator positions
Leading causes of administrator shortages:
42 percent: employee burnout from working conditions
41 percent: increased responsibilities
37 percent: better compensation in a neighboring Illinois district
29 percent: better compensation in another profession
27 percent: limited number of applicants due to district urbanicity
25 percent: limited number of applicants due to district size
25 percent: better compensation at a district in a nearby state
Leading causes of administrator open positions:
28 percent: resignations to move districts
16 percent: promotions
15 percent: retirement
13 percent: resignations for a different profession
12 percent: new, permanent positions
87 percent of school leaders reported no unmet need for administrators in 2023-2024 school year. For the remaining 13 percent, leading solutions for unfilled administrator positions were:
44 schools: hired a retiree
23 schools: distributed additional admin duties among teachers
23 schools: hired a teacher earning admin endorsement
PARAPROFESSIONALS
83 percent of school leaders surveyed indicated they have a serious or very serious problem with paraprofessional shortages
The shortage perception ranges greatly across the state – 14 percent in some counties, up to 100 percent in others
17 percent of school leaders say half or less of their paraprofessional candidates have the proper credentials for the position they are seeking
75 percent of school leaders say they received none or very few (under five) applicants for their open paraprofessional positions
Leading causes of paraprofessional shortages:
65 percent: better compensation in another profession
41 percent: employee burnout from working conditions
41 percent: better compensation in a neighboring Illinois district
39 percent: increased responsibilities
32 percent: limited number of applicants due to district urbanicity
30 percent: limited number of applicants due to district size
64 percent of school leaders (405 schools) say they did not hire anyone not fully credentialed. For the rest, 209 hired on a short-term approval
SUBSTITUTES
93 percent of school leaders surveyed indicated they have a serious or very serious problem with substitute shortages
The shortage perception ranges greatly across the state – 33 percent in some counties, up to 100 percent in others
78 percent of school leaders say half or less of their substitute candidates have the proper credentials for the position they are seeking
35 percent of school leaders say they received none or very few (under five) applicants for their open substitute positions
Leading causes of substitute shortages:
46 percent: limited number of applicants due to district urbanicity
41 percent: limited number of applicants due to district size
NON-LICENSED STAFF
73 percent of responding school leaders say they had problems finding bus drivers
60 percent say custodial/maintenance staff are hard to find
43 percent say food service workers are hard to find
OTHER FINDINGS
The survey asked school leaders about a number of solutions they are finding to improve educator recruitment/retention. The highest levels of success came from:
Actively working to improve working conditions to improve educator retention
Proactively working to place student teachers in the district
Supporting paras in completing required for PEL by providing financial resources
Offering additional compensation or benefits to retain staff
Actively working to increase leadership capacity to improve educator retention
The survey asked school leaders about actions taken at the state level (ISBE and the Legislature) to improve teacher recruitment/retention. The highest-rated changes include:
Increasing the number of days retired educators can sub without impacting their retirement status
Increasing the number of days a substitute can sub up to 120 days
Providing EBF that allowed the district to add additional staff
Waived passing of the teacher performance assessment for issuance of PEL
The survey asked school leaders about actions that could be taken at the state level (ISBE and the Legislature) to improve teacher recruitment/retention. The highest-rated changes include:
Modifying the teacher pension tier system
Providing additional loan forgiveness for more educators
Providing financial support to teacher prep candidates teach in chronic shortage areas
Investigating salary parity with other professions with the same licensure and education
Offer additional scholarships to teaching candidates
SURVEY DETAILS
761 of 965 school districts responded (78.8 percent)
Overall teacher shortage ratings steady – 3.4 like 2023, up from 3.0 in 2018 but down from 3.6 in 2022
Number of teacher positions filled by alternative measures up significantly in 2024 – 3,233, versus 1,271 in 2023, previous high was 1,996 in 2018
Administrator shortage steady – 2.1, down from 2.2 in 2023, 1.2 in 2018
Substitute shortage steady – 4.1, same as 2023, 4.0 in 2018
All teacher shortage areas most significant in special education and CTE, followed by middle school/high school, then elementary
School psychologists, speech-language pathologists, social workers, and nurses lead school support personnel shortages
Teacher shortages most severe in city districts, in vocational centers, in west-central, southwest and east-central Illinois
Most problems with finding qualified applicants seen in rural districts, in vocational centers, and in west-central, southwest and southeast Illinois