One number that frequently comes up in these discussions is 11,000 — often thrown out by the governor as the estimated size of Kentucky's teacher shortage.
State Education Commissioner Jason Glass acknowledged Tuesday that the stat reflects shortages over the course of a year and is not the most useful indicator of where vacancies stand at any given time.
As for the reasons for the shortage, Glass pointed to three factors.
"At least in my estimation it all comes down to these three things: pay, support, and respect. If we work on increasing total compensation, support for our educators and respect for our educators, I believe we can begin turning the tide on this difficult issue."Kentucky Education Commissioner Jason Glass
Regarding the issue of "respect," Glass specifically pointed to the politicization of what goes on in schools — with teachers being caught in the middle of culture war controversies, such as masking during the pandemic and social issues that often come under the "woke" label.
“The people who are making pronouns and transgender issues and woke issues a priority in our education are politicians. They are not the things that are in our schools,” Glass told lawmakers.
Rep. Russell Webber stressed other concerns he said he's heard directly from teachers in his district. The first, he said, was a lack of support from the administration, followed by increasingly unwieldy disciplinary problems, and a sense among teachers that they are not safe in the classroom.
"Find out what the real issues are that teachers are confronting," he urged. "Because I look at your list here, and those may be legitimate factors for large numbers of people in the classrooms... but I will tell you they are not the top three," the Republican said.
The hearing did not result in any votes on new bills.
