Nearly 2,000 vacant teacher positions across Arizona, report finds

PHOENIX — A recent report has found that there are nearly 2,000 vacant teacher positions across Arizona and the problem is continuing to grow.

The report from the Arizona School Personnel Administrators Association surveyed 172 state school districts and charter schools and found that there were 1,968 empty teacher positions in the state as of Dec. 8.

That number includes 866 teachers who had either resigned from or quit their jobs during the first four months of the school year.

In addition, the report found that 3,403 people who are currently in teaching positions do not meet the state’s standard requirements for teachers.

This latest report shows a continuing trend from an April report that found the teacher shortage hit “crisis levels.”

Justin Wing, the former president of the Arizona School Personnel Administrators Association, said the reason the state is having such a difficult time filling these positions is — in large part — due to teacher pay.

“If we were going to do a root cause analysis, the No. 1 reason for the teacher shortage is pay,” he said. “The only way to address this is to increase their pay.”

Over the past couple of years, Wing added, the pool of candidates for qualified teachers has “decreased significantly” with a greater number of teachers retiring and a fewer number of students pursing teaching degrees.

“It has a major impact on schools throughout Arizona. We want a qualified teacher in every classroom and we are not getting it,” he said.

Wing said “significantly increasing teacher pay, not one percent or five percent over 10 years — I’m talking a $10,000 to $15,000 [raise] over a short period” would help solve the state’s teacher shortage issue.

“This will help retain teachers and will alert students to go, ‘Hey, Arizona prioritizes teachers, you should consider entering the profession.'”

Other factors that would help teacher retention include increasing school funding and decreasing class sizes, Wing said.

Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey has pushed for increasing teacher pay by passing a voter-approved proposition — Proposition 123 — and a new budget, but admitted last month he does not know where the funding has gone.

Valley teachers took to the streets in October to push for a 20 percent pay raise after it was reported that Ducey gave 44 of his staff members raises up to 20 percent since the governor was elected in 2015.

Arizona schools chief Diane Douglas said there needs to be more new money in the state’s education system in order to give teachers what they deserve.

“One of the problems is that we don’t pay our teachers a livable wage,” she said, adding that Arizona is among the lowest in the nation for teacher pay.

“One of the best ways to do that quickly would be through Prop. 301,” Douglas said. Proposition 301 is a voter-approved sales tax increase that Douglas wants to see expanded through 2020.

“A majority [of the tax] will go to teacher’s salaries,” Douglas said, adding that teachers would see an average pay raise of $5,000 under the proposition.

“We need to find a new revenue source. There is not enough money in the system,” she said. “When it comes to teacher’s salaries, [the revenue source] needs to be something they can depend on.”

KTAR News’ Nailea Leon, Ashley Flood and Bob McClay contributed to this report. 

Follow @KTAR923