Nearly a third of teacher vacancies went unfilled this fall, most in 8 years

Adrienne Washington/Cronkite News Oct. 4, 2023

WASHINGTON – Nearly one-third of teacher vacancies in Arizona public and charter schools were still unfilled one month into the school year, according to a new report, the most in eight years of data on school vacancies.

The Arizona School Personnel Administrators Association report for the 2023-24 school year said that of the 7,518.3 open teacher positions this fall, 2,229.7 were still unfilled as of September, or 29.7% of the openings. That is up from 26.9% at the same time last year.

The report also said that of the 5,288.6 teachers hired, 3,997.4 of the slots were filled by teachers who do not meet the state’s standard certification requirements, but are allowed to teach under an alternative pathway. That translates to 75.6% of the new hires.

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