COLUMBIA, S.C. — A bill advancing in the South Carolina House aims to address rising teacher vacancies by allowing non-certified experts to fill the gaps.
There were 1,400 teacher vacancies at the start of this school year, according to the Center for Educator Recruitment, Retention, and Advancement (CERRA).
“Vacancies have been growing. This is a disservice to students in South Carolina and if we can't find a way to retain our great teachers then we're not meeting the mark for our students,” said Patrick Kelly with the Palmetto State Teachers Association.
The House Education Committee on Wednesday voted to send the bill to the floor for debate, sparking both interest and skepticism among teacher advocates.
The proposed bill outlines a five-year pilot program that would permit most schools to hire up to a quarter of their teaching staff with non-certified instructors.
While Kelly is cautious about the idea, he acknowledges that having non-certified teachers in schools might be preferable to leaving positions unfilled.
“Educator certification matters,” said Kelly. “The shortage is great, and if this is a way to get one more student access to all highly qualified teachers on a short-term basis, then it's probably where we're at as a state, which is an unfortunate reality that this is even necessary.”
Under the bill, individuals hired as non-certified instructors must have a college degree in the field they will teach and at least five years of relevant experience. They would be required to obtain certification within three years if they wish to continue teaching beyond that period. The bill mandates ongoing training but delegates the specifics to schools and the Department of Education.
The proposed program would operate on a five-year basis unless renewed by the Legislature through new legislation.
Representative Kambrell Garvin stressed the importance of ensuring that these individuals receive comprehensive support and training from their respective school districts.
“There won't just be people walking off the street who have no experience, and who won't have any sort of help with classroom management. These people will be undergoing rigorous training from their school district that will help alleviate any concerns that I had and I hope that others have as well,” said Garvin.
Garvin said this is just one extra tool in the toolbox.
“Is it going to fix all issues that we're facing in regards to teacher vacancies? No, but it will be another opportunity that we have to recruit high-quality teachers into the classroom,” said Garvin.
In addition to the bill allowing alternative certification, lawmakers also included separate legislation to make educators' professional teaching certificates permanent and to provide teachers the option to exit their contracts upon seeing their salary.
Right now, teachers must sign a contract each year before knowing what they'll be paid. If they break their contract they are deemed guilty of unprofessional conduct and can have their license suspended for up to a year.
"It's wonderful to have the bill with alternative certification to give options for bringing other people into the classroom, but we should also be taking care of the teachers already in the classroom, so combining these two is, in my opinion, the best of both worlds,” said Rep. Shannon Erickson (R-Beaufort).
Kelly agrees.
“We better retain the noncertified teachers. We also need to retain the teachers we've got to mitigate the need for a noncertified pilot program in the first place,” said Kelly.