There’s a shortage of teachers in the area.

Wednesday, February 14, 2001

There’s a shortage of teachers in the area. That’s a given.

Area school districts have trouble filling vacancies when they occur because there’s a short list of possible candidates. In the past, districts had plenty of qualified candidates to fill jobs.

A newly organized group of districts along the Interstate 35 corridor – including Austin, Faribault, Albert Lea and Owatonna – have formed a group to explore licensing help for those who are interested in entering the profession or those teachers who are interested in changing their area of specialty.

Teachers are especially needed in the areas of mathematics, science, special education and English as a second language. The newly formed group hopes to help fill the needs of area districts in search of teachers.

The group also has been working with the University of Minnesota at Mankato and Winona State University in an effort to make classes easily accessible to those with a desire to learn to teach. Classes will be offered at times most convenient, such as evenings and weekends.

The group is to be congratulated at finding a solution to the problem. While other districts consider hiring teachers who may not be the best for the positions that need to be filled, the I-35 group is making things work to the best of all the districts participating.