Teacher Shortages in Rural America and Suggestions for Solution. Rural Research Report. Volume 13, Issue 8, Spring 2002

In a climate of increasing enrollment, reduced funding, and unfunded mandated state and federal programs, urban and rural school districts find it increasingly difficult to attract and retain qualified teachers. This paper offers suggestions to local school boards and district administrators in states with significant numbers of rural schools: (1) Encourage superintendents and school boards to evaluate their recruitment practices; (2) Produce public service announcements about the teacher shortage, alternative teacher certification routes, and quality of life in rural classrooms; (3) Pass legislation and provide funding for teacher mentoring programs; (4) Provide training and/or information to administrators and school board members in new and effective teacher recruitment and retention strategies; (5) Provide financial support to increase the base salaries of rural school districts; (6) Provide incentives for preservice teachers to complete their student teaching experiences in rural school districts; (7) Examine potential programs for recruitment and training in areas of high-demand positions; (8) Sponsor research in the areas of teacher recruitment and retention; (9) Encourage the development of college and university teacher recruitment programs that identify candidates with rural backgrounds; (10) Encourage and financially support aggressive recruitment in middle schools and high schools, exposing students to peer tutoring, camps, role models, classes in educational theory, and technology and instruction; (11) Conduct research on rural administrators' attitudes toward teacher motivation, teacher induction, and new teacher support systems; (12) Follow the Education Commission of the States' suggestions that states forgive student loans and recruit mid-career professionals from other fields; (13) Require training for building- and district-level administrators related to positive school climate and its relationship to achievement, retention, and recruitment; (14) Develop strategies to attract minorities and males into the teaching profession; (15) School boards may need to look to past practices to recruit teachers to their community; and (16) Districts need to give serious thought to their retention practices, specifically the extracurricular responsibilities assigned to novice teachers. A bibliography is included. (Contains 4 tables.)