Bill Dawson: Where have all the teachers gone? To less stressful, higher paying jobs

To The Daily Sun,

There is a failure of the system that produces teachers. Teaching is a difficult job. Contrary to some who have never tried it, a lot of dedication goes into doing the job properly. Most who chose the profession are destined to leave it after about 20 years. We have to ask ourselves why that is so.

Let me just get down to why they leave. Most teachers are paid less than 65% of the population. A great number of them have significant student loan debt as they come out of college. Trying to start a family, and buy a house while being underpaid during the first decade of their careers has resulted in a significant financial strain. As a result, a considerable number leave the profession.

Another portion of the population hangs in there for a second decade. They stay because they love what they do. They push for higher wages. They find as they do so, increased animosity from the communities they serve. Among the most capable, there is a growing awareness that many jobs with less stress are available to them. They discover that they can command salaries nearly double what they can earn as a teacher.

Many, as a means to accumulate retirement funding, have answered the call of cash and added respect. They will be missed by their communities. Alas, it’s too late to entice them to stay with offers of money they were due all those years they did without.

Local schools and their boards have been politicized by certain radical elements of our society. When those who have no idea how to educate take over school boards, the children and youth will suffer. We need to be alert to that threat.

Bill Dawson

Northfield