Research shows that a good teacher can impact everything from student learning in the moment to their lifetime earnings and likelihood to avoid incarceration as adults. However, many schools are facing a shortage of highly qualified teachers, and those who are already in classrooms are leaving the profession at an alarming rate, according to data shared by Penn State Graduate School of Education Dean and George and Diane Weiss Professor of Education Katherine O. Strunk during the NC State College of Education’s 2025 Research Celebration on Jan. 27.
Strunk shared national data that showed there were more than 50,000 teacher vacancies across the United States during the past school year and that 1 in 10 vacancies are filled by individuals without a standard teaching license. Additionally, 44% of teachers leave the profession within their first five years in the classroom.
In addition, undergraduate teacher preparation programs across the country in 2021 only enrolled 55% of the number of students they had enrolled a decade prior, and only 68% of those students completed their teacher preparation program.
“This is a call to action for us. We need to figure out how to make sure we’re training high-quality teachers in the areas of need to come into these classrooms,” Strunk said.
During her talk, Strunk identified three areas of concern that create barriers for teachers to enter and remain in the profession:
Cost: In addition to costs associated with training to become a teacher, including tuition and a lack of pay during the student-teaching process, Strunk noted that teachers are typically paid about 26% less than other similarly educated professionals.
“If pay is an indicator of prestige, we’re making it clear to our teachers, and to those who would be teachers, that we don’t think they’re worth the high salaries we afford other professionals,” she said.
Location: More than three decades of research support the fact that teachers like to work close to where they grew up or attended their teacher preparation programs. However, using the state of Michigan — where she has conducted a significant body of her research — as an example, Strunk noted that nearly one-third of the state’s residents don’t have access to a teacher preparation program less than an hour away from home.
“Not only must we innovate to locate teacher preparation programs across the state by doing partnerships with community colleges or other kinds of partnerships that can move teacher prep programs closer to students, we also should consider how best to grow our own teachers from districts that face shortages,” she said.
Working conditions: Improvement plans, school climate, effective school leadership, school safety and the availability of resources all impact a teacher’s job satisfaction and, therefore, their desire to stay in the classroom. In addition to preparing effective school leaders, Strunk noted that it’s important for scholars to develop school improvement plans in conjunction with educators.
“Teachers are on the ground; they know what’s going on in the schools; they know what’s happening with their students; they know what they need in their classrooms, and if we put together a plan for how to improve those schools and districts and don’t include teacher voices, they’re not going to feel very engaged in the process, and they’re probably not going to stay,” she said.
Strunk noted that there is not one solution to teacher shortages, as each district and individual school will require an approach that addresses their unique circumstances and needs, and reminded the researchers in the audience that their research, showcased during the event, will be the next step in addressing this and other issues in education.
Celebrating Research in the College of Education
During the Research Celebration, College of Education faculty, research associates and graduate students shared about 20 presentations of their scholarly work that covered topics from AI and virtual reality in education to participatory science projects in elementary schools and preparing critically conscious mathematics teachers.
In addition to showcasing research from the College of Education, the celebration recognized the college’s research achievements.
In 2023-24, faculty and research associates in the College of Education, including the Belk Center for Community College Leadership and Research and Friday Institute for Educational Innovation, set a new record for research expenditures, with a total of $20,443,364 spent conducting research. So far this year, researchers have received more than $13 million in funding for nearly 40 externally-funded research projects.
“These achievements highlight the exceptional work and impact of our college, driving innovation and advancing our mission through groundbreaking research efforts,” said Associate Dean for Research and Innovation Karen Hollebrands.
“The impact of our research is driven by the dedication and expertise of our faculty, researchers and students,” said College of Education Dean Paola Sztajn. “Together, they form a powerful partnership that generates creative thinking and sparks innovation. This collaboration enhances the impact of our work while preparing the next generation of researchers to address important challenges facing the field of education.”
In the U.S. News & World Report’s 2024-2025 Best Global Universities Subject Rankings, NC State ranked No. 60 in the world in the education and educational research category, making it the top globally ranked university for this field of study in North Carolina.