Where have all the teachers gone?

WJ Staff 
WALSENBURG — Colorado is suffering from a shortage of teachers.  All 178 school districts are affected.  Classes are canceled, schedules changed, class sizes increased, and curriculums altered due to the lack of staff. Huerfano RE-1 has been short staffed this year, and has made do with alternative licensed teachers, substitutes and changes in a number of classes.
Why is this?  Colleges are turning out fewer teachers than ever before.  People are leaving the profession, and the standard answer is time and money.  People can’t afford it.  For many, the varied and often conflicting regulations require more time spent filling out paperwork than teaching.  Unpaid overtime has become a standard that can’t be maintained.  Teachers report they are in the school by 6am and don’t leave until 8 pm.  Others take work home and are often up until midnight.  By the time the hours worked are factored, their salaries represent a wage at or below minimum wage.  On top of that, the joy of teaching is spoiled, for many, by the constant testing and directives from the state.
Rural districts are hurting more than urban districts.  The public perception is the two types of districts are treated the same in that both get funding from the state based on student counts.  The reality is very different.
What are the facts?  First off, 148 of the 178 school districts are rural, yet represent 20% of the student population.  One hundred and ten are considered Small Rural; fewer than 1000 students.  Fourteen have less than 100 students, 38 have less than 250 students, and 85 have less than 500 students. Sixty districts are either a K-12 site, or in one building. Thirty eight districts operate with a single administrator.
How does this affect education?  It has made it more difficult.  Doing more with less has become an art form.  The state has repeatedly cut budgets.  Remember the negative factor?  It hurts rural school districts as they stretch their already tight resources in the struggle to serve students.  Rural schools have increased poverty rates, higher special education rates, lower than average salaries, higher turnover rates, and teacher shortages.  The isolation many rural districts face is another factor.  While it may be cheap to live outside the Denver metro area, it also means people travel upwards of 90 miles to shop, or find entertainment.  Districts need to provide bus transportation as there is no public transport.  Buildings are older, and upkeep can drain a budget with just one damaged boiler or leaking roof.
Against all odds, rural schools can be gems of education.  Graduation rates average 83 percent. Schools know their students as individuals and parental involvement is high.  Most districts provide post-secondary enrollment.
Next time someone complains about a school or district, remember that rural schools are the MacGyvers of education.  Dropped into the back of beyond, they pull out their nub of a pencil and scrap of toast to give rural students the best education money has not yet paid for.