Illinois Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton told students and administrators at Governors State University in University Park Tuesday the state’s ongoing teacher shortage is not something new or a result of COVID-19, though the pandemic posed special challenges to schools and drove college enrollment numbers down.
“Unfortunately, there is this sort of narrative that this is something that is new,” Stratton said. “I think what we have to do first and foremost is we have to listen to those that are closest to this issue. That includes the students who are in teacher preparation programs and it includes those that are teaching and leading and facilitating these programs, like the administration here at GSU and other institutions.”
Stratton is on a tour of all Illinois’ state universities to discuss issues facing the education system. The lieutenant governor’s office said 88% of Illinois schools say they are experiencing a teacher shortage and 55% of teachers across the country say they want to leave the profession after just a few years.
Stratton said during her visits she has heard many people talk about barriers students face when entering college, especially as first-generation students or students with financial difficulties.
“We’re hearing that we need to do more to lift up the field of education and the professionals that are our educators, who don’t always hear that they are appreciated,” she said. “We have to do more to lift up the profession and let teachers know that they are appreciated not just with our words, but as we think about the policies that can show our support.”
Among the policies cited by Stratton is an increase in education spending in this year’s state budget, with $9.7 billion allocated for K-12 schools and $2.2 billion for higher education. These funds include $122 million more in Monetary Award Program Grant funding for students with financial need, and increased spending on scholarships for teachers of color. The budget also includes $518 million for evidence-based funding for the state’s most under-resourced students, as well as classroom upgrades, textbooks and staff salaries.
GSU President Cheryl Green said the university recently received $1.1 million from the state and anticipates another $1.3 million in the coming year.
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That includes funding from the state’s Early Childhood Education Consortium Act, which is used to provide training, mentorships and scholarships for child care workforce professionals to pursue advanced credentials. Governors State is also creating a master’s degree program in early childhood education and has restructured its bachelor’s degree programs for education to create more flexible scheduling options. Students enrolled in the program will be able to take courses during traditional school hours as well as in the evenings, on Saturdays and online.
The school is also using a grant it received in March from the Community Foundation of Will County, donated by Amazon, to create an 18-month, paraprofessional to early childhood educator career pathways program.
GSU College of Education Dean Shannon B. Dermer said the new programs are aimed at “removing barriers that keep people from getting their licenses,” noting the flexible schedule and licensing programs for professionals are particularly beneficial for those who have families or cannot take classes full time for economic reasons.
Stratton, the first Black woman elected lieutenant governor in Illinois and the daughter of a teacher, emphasized the importance of not only recruiting more students into the education field, but of “building a strong, diverse teacher pipeline.”
The same National Education Association study that showed more than half of all teachers want to leave the field early in their careers noted the problem is worse in communities of color. The study found that 62% of Black teachers and 59% of Latino teachers, groups that are already underrepresented in the field, are considering leaving the profession after a few years. Many of the initiatives discussed Tuesday were aimed at not only retaining the teachers in the system but recruiting more students, especially students of color.
“It is important for us to all recognize and share the statistics that show that having diverse teachers improves the outcomes for all students,” Stratton said. “Having teachers who know their experiences makes those students more likely to graduate and go to college, and that’s a good outcome that we want to see happen.”
Jessie Molloy is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.