COVID-19 pandemic worsens hiring woes at Illinois schools, with 88% of districts reporting teacher shortages in new survey

CHICAGO -- Nearly 90% of Illinois school districts statewide are struggling with an alarming teacher shortage that has reached a crisis level during the COVID-19 pandemic, officials with an organization of regional superintendents said Tuesday.

The escalating statewide teacher shortage, which officials said is expected to worsen in the coming years, was reflected in the results of a fall survey of more than 660 Illinois school districts by the Illinois Association of Regional Superintendents of Schools.

With the organization’s study of the teacher shortage nowin its fifth year, the most recent survey data illuminate how during the pandemic, Illinois schools are increasingly struggling to recruit qualified teachers, while also witnessing veteran