Teacher shortages have been common in many schools recently. Coming back from COVID, many teachers were stripped of their jobs because of schools getting shut down and limited career options.

   Amanda Anspaugh, the vice principal of Northwest High School, shares information about the teacher shortage.

   “What I think I would attribute it to is there are fewer and fewer college students going into the field of education because it is one of the lower paying professions after you earn a four year degree,” said Anspaugh. “So what the millennial generation is finding out is that if they’re going to go through a four-year college degree, and they would like to come out making a certain X amount of dollars, and knowing that in the state of Michigan, some of the starting teacher salaries are at $29,000, and it cost about just under $48,000 to live comfortably in the state of Michigan, it doesn’t match.”

   Income, salaries, and the price of living in Michigan have been a major block in the teaching profession, leaving fewer individuals to go into the profession of teaching.

   “Years ago, this is my 25th year in education, so I started my career in 1999 and at that time, there were so many of us, we would get laid off at the end of each school year, and you may or may not be the lucky one to get called back,” said Anspaugh. “Now, teacher education students can go shopping around because the jobs are there, and the number of people retiring, and the number of students that are going into education are not matching right now.”

   “So, what’s happening is, you are going to now be able to shop for the highest paid teacher salary, and so, if you’re in a district like us, and not that we’re in a what we call teacher negotiation contract time right now, to help increase that, we’re going to look at matching the living wage in the state of Michigan because we do not pay our starting teacher salary,” said Anspaugh.

   Northwest is trying to help teachers live more comfortably by increasing salaries and annual income.

   “Mr. Bontrager never, never matches or never pays the starting teacher salary because he always puts them at a different level,” said Anspaugh. “I think it’s been eye-opening for him, being the Superintendent, that his oldest daughter is a first-year teacher, and knowing what it costs to live on her own now, and also what she’s currently making, it doesn’t match, so he’s kind of been a big advocate for increasing teacher salaries so that we can then, in turn, help with the teacher shortage.”

   When COVID hit a few years ago and students and teachers were forced to switch to online school for safety, hardships increased in many different aspects.

   “You still need virtual teachers, so whether they’re in person, physically, or behind a screen teaching, they’re still providing an education,” said Anspaugh. “So the reality is, if you’re going to be a virtual teacher, you still need a teaching certification, so I don’t think that has impacted it nearly as much as other aspects have.”

   The shortages may not always be visible to the open eye, but they are prevalent in schools across the state.

   “We still need humans to carry out the standards, the state standards, in order for us to give a diploma, so I don’t think that there’s a visible shortage versus the impact of not as many applications coming in for these positions,” said Anspaugh.

   “For example, we have had a special education teacher posting this entire summer, this entire fall, and it took until November to finally fill it and so whereas 10 years ago we would have had 19 applicants to sift through,” said Anspaugh. “So it’s a matter of in one decade, the shift in teachers and teachers going into the field.”

   The salaries and income aren’t always a factor in some individuals’ decisions to become an educator.

   “I knew from an early age that I wanted to be a math teacher, and so as soon as I graduated, I knew exactly that I was going to be a math major and an elementary education minor, and here I am, 25 years later,” said Anspaugh. “I think by just being mindful of what other county schools are offering first year teachers will be helpful.”

   The efforts to increase salaries and income for new teachers have been a huge effort in increasing educators in Northwest Community Schools, and it has made a major impact on the availability and opportunities for teachers.