Teacher Shortage In Virginia Targeted In Youngkin Executive Directive

STAFFORD, VA — Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin on Thursday signed an executive directive aimed at addressing a shortage of teachers in the state.

The executive directive outlines steps Youngkin's administration is planning to take to make it easier for people to obtain teaching certifications, as well as for retired teachers and teachers from other states to teach in Virginia classrooms.

The effort will involve “removing as many obstacles as we can to address this near-term challenge and also the long-term challenge of making sure that we have in every classroom extraordinary teachers,” Youngkin said Thursday at an event at Colonial Forge High School in Stafford, where he signed Executive Directive Number Three.

Youngkin cited a 10-percent salary increase for teachers in Virginia that was included in the state’s fiscal year 2023 budget that he signed into law in June. The 10-percent salary increase will be rolled out over two years and will include a bonus for teachers in December, he said.

“The challenges of getting a license are real,” he said. “I will direct [Virginia Superintendent of Public Instruction Jillian Balow] and her entire team to work to make that path easier, to make it faster, to recognize we must have high-quality teachers, but let’s get them in the classroom faster.”

The governor's directive "has tremendous potential to mitigate our teacher shortage and significantly increase support for teachers, students, and administrators,” Del. Tara Durant (R-28th), who represents part of Stafford County, said in a statement Thursday.

James Fedderman, president of the Virginia Educators Association, said the reason for a teacher shortage in Virginia is not a mystery. "Our teachers are not only underpaid, but do their jobs under almost unbearably difficult working conditions," Fedderman said in a statement Thursday. "They don’t get the respect they deserve and they aren’t given the resources they need to most effectively serve our students."

One of the VEA's suggestions is to pay educators competitive salaries to attract and retain high-quality staff.

"Our current budget surplus could be used effectively to solve this problem, which affects all Virginia’s citizens," Fedderman said in response to the executive directive. "By what he decides to do with those funds, our governor will show us if he truly values education and solving our teacher shortages.”

Atif Qarni, Virginia's secretary of education under former Gov. Ralph Northam, told WTOP that teacher shortages in the state are due to “ongoing attacks on public education, from COVID to CRT to curriculum.”

"Most things listed in the executive order are not new initiatives and pale in comparison to what the Northam administration did to support children, teachers and public education,” Qarni said.

Youngkin's executive directive states that consistent with national trends, Virginia is seeing teacher shortages.

"There are few professionals who are more dedicated and hardworking than teachers. Educating Virginia's children requires a strong teacher pipeline and workforce," the executive directive states. "Recruiting, growing, and retaining high-quality teachers is crucial to ensuring a best-in-class education for our students. One of my Administration’s top priorities is to ensure we provide a great teacher for every classroom in every school in Virginia."

The executive directive states that the Virginia Superintendent of Public Instruction will work on teacher recruitment and retention efforts in communities most affected by the teacher shortages by:

• Targeting discretionary grants for teacher recruitment and retention bonuses to school divisions with the highest and most persistent teacher vacancy rates.
• Coordinating teacher recruitment and retention dollars to maximize teacher benefits.
• Targeting recruitment incentives toward existing, previously filled positions, rather than those newly established through the federal government’s COVID-19 relief funds that expire in 2024.

The executive directive also calls on state education officials to establish a registered teacher occupation apprenticeship program with school divisions and educator preparation providers to train and license new teachers, including paraprofessional educators.

Youngkin emphasized that he wants to make affordable childcare more accessible for teachers. State officials will work on developing policies, including any potential legislation, to support childcare operating inside of schools to benefit teachers.

The governor also said he wants to find out why there are so many teacher vacancies in Virginia. State education officials will be tasked with developing and administering an annual survey for all returning teachers to identify what is working, as well as to identify the main reasons why teachers are moving to jobs in other jurisdictions or leaving the profession.

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