More than a third of all Pa. districts had teacher vacancies amid continuing educator shortage

Pennsylvania teacher vacancies dipped slightly over the last year, but more than a third of all districts in the state still reported at least one vacancy this school year — meaning thousands of kids lacked a permanent teacher, or were placed in larger classes for all or part of the term.

The numbers were starker in schools that educate larger proportions of children living in poverty and kids of color, according to a new research brief by Penn State University’s Center for Evaluation and Education Policy Analysis.

“Students most in need of well-qualified teachers tend to be the least likely to have access to them,” wrote the brief’s authors, Ed Fuller and Emily Walsh.

In the 2023-24 school year, 44% of Pennsylvania schools reported at least one vacancy; that dipped slightly to 38% in 2024-25.

Here’s what to know about the latest research:

Amid a continuing national shortage, special education teachers represent the greatest area of need.

One in four systems said they had at least one vacant special ed teaching job.

“Our most vulnerable students are children in special education. These students deserve our very best, yet we cannot even ensure every special education teaching position is filled with a qualified teacher. The depth and breadth of vacancies in this important area should shock our commonwealth and spur immediate action to rectify this issue,” the authors wrote.

The next most significant area of need is teachers qualified to work with English language learners, another vulnerable population.

There were also gaps in teachers certified to instruct technology classes, world languages, computer science, science, math, and business.

“Continued vacancies (as well as the hiring of teachers on emergency permits) ensure that not every child will have an adequate level of preparation in these areas, thus locking them out of the very types of careers that will be the economic engine of the commonwealth in the foreseeable future,” the brief said.

Cyber charter schools were the most likely to have unfilled teaching jobs — 92% in 2024-25, up from almost 77% in 2023-24. More than 50% of charters that operate brick-and-mortar schools reported vacancies in both years. The number was lower for traditional public school districts — 41% in 2023-24 and 37.5% this school year.

Fuller and Welsh’s analysis found that districts and schools that educate more students living in poverty and students of color were more likely to have vacancies.

More than half — 61.5% — of the Pennsylvania districts that educate the most students of color had vacancies.

Teacher vacancy rates for the districts that educate the highest concentration of students living in poverty were more than 10 times higher than those in the lowest three quintiles of districts.

Teacher vacancies are typically covered by a long-term substitute or a series of substitute teachers, or are handled by merging classes, leading to less attention on students. In other cases, vacancies are filled by emergency-prepared teachers who lack full credentials.

“On average, teachers on an emergency permit have lower student achievement growth than certified teachers,” the analysis found. “Again, students are harmed because they are likely to fall behind their peers academically and will have greater difficulty entering a post-secondary major in that field as well as a career in that field.”

Fuller and Welsh suggested several fixes, including bolstering and expanding a state program that pays student teachers. Pennsylvania ought to incentivize would-be teachers pursuing certification in high-needs areas like special education, ELL, math, science, and world languages, they argued.

They also believe convening a group to review the state’s teacher certification process and supporting “grow-your-own” teacher recruitment programs and teacher retention programs would help correct the problem.