Official: State emergency teacher licenses up 54% in 2018-19

Image: Tulsa World

(Information from: Tulsa World, http://www.tulsaworld.com)
TULSA, Okla. (AP) – Oklahoma education officials say that the state’s public schools hired roughly 1,000 more non-accredited teachers in the most recent school year compared to 2017-2018, as administrators face an ongoing teacher shortage.
State public schools employed 3,038 non-accredited teachers in 2018-2019, indicating a 54% jump over the prior school year’s 1,975 teachers.
The Tulsa World reports that the increase may continue. The state Board of Education received a recommendation list on Thursday to certify another 818 teachers, which included 531 renewals.
The certificates allow people without a state teaching license to teach in a classroom for two years while they complete training.
Oklahoma emergency teacher licenses exceeded 2,500 certificates last year.
A state education report in January found that 30,000 Oklahoma teachers have left profession in the last six years.