More than 60 percent of public K-12 educators say they are considering leaving teaching, according to a February 2023 Horace Mann Educators Corporation report. Their decisions are being driven by a combination of staffing shortages, stress and financial worry.

The report, “Checks and Balance: How financial stress and heavier workloads are accelerating the teacher shortage,” shares insights from more than 500 K-12 educators surveyed about the current educational climate and what challenges educators are facing. Among the findings:

“For many teachers, the profession is a calling. They love making an impact on students and seeing them succeed, but their capacity to take on more work is at a breaking point,” said Horace Mann National Business Solutions Executive Kelly Ruwe, in a news release. “The pandemic exacerbated the teacher shortage, and remaining staff are taking on extra responsibilities without additional compensation. Often this means elimination of their planning time, other students parsed out to their classrooms when another teacher calls in sick, or even vacuuming their own rooms due to a lack of custodial staff. This negatively impacts both teacher morale and student learning.”

The challenges of chronic school understaffing may be the tipping point for many educators who have for years felt overworked and underappreciated.

In addition, 77 percent of public school educators are women, who have historically faced more challenges in financial security. Many private sector job opportunities offer higher pay, fewer hours and less stress.

Surveyed educators identified a few changes that would make them more likely to stay, including better salary, better parent/community support, more supportive leadership and smaller class sizes.

“School districts can do more to provide financial wellness resources and support,” Ruwe said. “They can enhance benefit packages to provide more protection coverage to all school employees. And they can use mentoring and recognition programs to help retain teachers and strengthen a school’s culture.”

Read the full report, including recommendations on creating a “stay strategy” for teachers, at content.acsa.org/checks-balance-how-financial-stress-and-heavier-workloads-are-accelerating-the-teacher-shortage/.