All across the country, states are feeling the affects of teacher shortages and Pennsylvania is no different.

The Penn State Center recently found that over 9,500 teachers left their jobs during the 2022/2023 school year.

"One of the things that is so important for the future of our young people is a quality education and if you do not have a competent teacher in front of you in the classroom then how can we expect these kids to learn," said State Representative Bob Merski.

He spent years working as an educator and said these shortages are a system wide failure and part of it is because of the deprofessionalization of the teaching profession.

"The job is unattractive to college graduates, nobody wants to do it and they wonder why. Well, when you have half a pension and you have pay freezes year after year, it becomes unattractive when they can go into the private sector and get bonuses and benefits just for getting hired," Merski said.

To try and fix the shortages, Merski said he and his colleagues in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives are working on three key things.

A $10,000 dollar stipend for student teachers that may go up in the future, passing legislation know as "Grow Your Own Educators," and also providing financial incentives for existing teachers to increase their qualifications.

"We have many teachers that are certified out of their content area and this would allow them to get certified in the content area that they are teaching which would then enhance the education of the students," he said.

Merski is calling for action sooner rather than later as these shortages continue to affect us here in Erie County.

"This is a crisis of epic proportions but it is a crisis of our own making, we have to reprofessionalize and pay people what the job is worth," he said.

The Erie School District released a statement to Erie News Now:

“School districts locally and across the nation are grappling with teacher and staff shortages; this is not a challenge that is unique to Erie’s Public Schools. We are always seeking to attract qualified employees at every level across the district, and are proactively establishing creative partnerships with local organizations to help increase the pool of talented candidates who want to make a difference in the lives of our students and families.”