Data shows fewer teacher shortages, though some schools still struggling

Dec. 20, 2024, 2 p.m. ·

Classroom
(Photo courtesy of Adobe Stock)

Nebraska schools saw some relief this school year with fewer open teacher positions across the state, but the shortage continues.

Public and nonpublic schools reported about 669 unfilled positions for the 2024-25 school year, according to data from the Nebraska Department of Education. Of those, around 200 were vacant. The rest were filled with someone who wasn’t fully qualified — like a substitute teacher, someone not endorsed in the content area or someone with a provisional permit.

In the previous school year, there were 908 unfilled positions.

Special education teachers are still the largest shortage for the state with around 150 unfilled positions. There were about 209 last school year.

Early childhood educators, school psychologists and school counselors saw more open positions this school year. All three have been designated as shortage areas for the past five years.

About 168 of the open positions were in school districts with less than 500 students. This is similar to what smaller school districts reported last school year.

Over 150 school districts and nonpublic schools reported unfilled positions.