Educator Pipeline

Strengthening the Educator Pipeline and Supporting Aspiring Educators

Across the nation, public schools face a shortage of teachers, education support professionals, and other educators.  The shortage of Black, Latino, and Indigenous educators is especially pronounced, and fewer people are choosing to enter the profession. In a survey, 55 percent of NEA members said they were considering leaving the profession they love earlier than they’d planned because they feel overwhelmed and under-supported. These factors and more affect our nation’s ability to attract talented individuals to education.

The educator shortage is at crisis levels in rural communities. At the same time, there is a nationwide shortage of educators in critical subjects, such as mathematics, science, special education, and multilingual education. Unfortunately, some states have responded to the crisis by lowering the requirements for teaching or increasing workloads. 

Educators love what they do, but they need more support, including better pay and improved working conditions, to maintain their passion for teaching and nurturing students.

The NEA has identified several solutions, such as making pay and benefits competitive; improving working conditions; granting educators more of a say in their work and autonomy on the job; improving student loan forgiveness options; improving recruitment strategies; and creating or augmenting retention strategies. These might include grow-your-own programs to recruit and prepare educators to teach and work in their local communities; fully funding teacher residency programs; developing apprenticeship programs using the residency model; engaging local union members; expanding the Federal Work–Study Program to include clinical practice; and providing high-quality professional development for educators at all stages of their careers.