Educators, Students, and Lawmakers Urge Full Funding of Pennsylvania's Student Teacher Stipend to Rebuild Pennsylvania Teacher Pipeline
Harrisburg, PA - Yesterday in Harrisburg, nearly 75 education advocates, including teachers, student teachers, high school students, higher education leaders, community and economic development professionals, and lawmakers, gathered to call for solutions to end Pennsylvania's teacher shortage crisis, including fully funding student teacher stipends in this year's state budget.
#PANeedsTeachers and Teach Plus PA organized the rally. It highlighted the urgent need for solutions to rebuild Pennsylvania's teacher pipeline amid a historic decline in certified teachers and rising educator vacancies.
"Pennsylvania is facing a dire teacher shortage crisis," said Laura Boyce, Executive Director of Teach Plus Pennsylvania and a leader with #PANeedsTeachers. "We've seen a 75% drop in new teachers over the past decade, and now issue more emergency teaching certificates than full certifications. Without action, we risk failing an entire generation of students."
Boyce and other speakers underscored the critical role of the student teacher stipend program, which provides financial support to aspiring teachers during their required unpaid student teaching semester. They urged lawmakers to increase funding to ensure every student teacher benefits from the program.
"The teacher shortage is not hitting every community equally — it's most severe in districts serving students of color, students in poverty, and underfunded urban and rural districts," Boyce added. "Fully funding stipends is a concrete step toward recruiting and retaining diverse, passionate teachers where they're needed most."
Senator Vincent Hughes and Representative Kristin Marcell, bipartisan champions of solutions to end the teacher shortage, joined the press conference and highlighted legislative efforts to rebuild the teacher pipeline. Sen. Carolyn Comitta and Rep. Ismail "Izzy" Smith-Wade-El and Rep. Keith Harris also joined the press conference.
Current and aspiring teachers shared personal stories of how financial barriers nearly derailed their path into the profession.
Jake Kargo, a student teacher at Millersville University, credited the $10,000 stipend he received with allowing him to stay afloat financially while completing his teaching practicum.
"Before receiving the student teacher stipend, I wasn't just running on empty - I was in debt to my own energy, time, and mental health," said Kargo. "Then came the stipend. And when I say it lifted a weight off my chest, I mean it literally helped me breathe again. I was able to reduce my hours at the before-and-after-school program. I could come home and actually focus on teaching - on planning, growing, and connecting with my students. I wasn't afraid of missing a rent payment. I wasn't wondering how I'd afford groceries or gas. I could focus on becoming the teacher I set out to be."
Damani Knox, a high school student in Philadelphia's SLA Beeber who is participating in a "grow-your-own" teaching pathway, emphasized the power of early educator pipeline programs and called for investments to expand them statewide.
“I am here today because the ‘grow-your-own’ program I joined changed my life," said Knox. "It gave me not only skills but purpose. And I want others to have the same opportunity - to walk this path without hesitation, without financial worry, without doubt."
President of the Harrisburg Regional Chamber, Ryan Unger warned that the crisis threatens Pennsylvania's workforce development pipeline and local economies.
"Our economy depends on strong public schools to prepare the next generation of workers," Unger said. "The teacher shortage isn't just an educational imperative, it's an economic imperative."
The speakers called on lawmakers to take action and pass legislation this year to help rebuild the teacher pipeline including:
Fully fund student teacher stipends at $50-55 million in the FY25- 26 budget
Expand teacher apprenticeships and grow-your-own educator programs
Improve educator workforce data to inform recruitment and retention strategies
"As Pennsylvania invests historic new dollars in public education following the school funding lawsuit, we must ensure we have enough qualified teachers to meet growing demand," Boyce said. "The legislature can take this opportunity to rebuild the profession and ensure every child has access to an excellent teacher."
About #PANeedsTeachers: We are a statewide coalition of organizations and individuals united behind the need to support our hardworking teachers and school staff, to provide PA's children with an education that ensures their future success and the success of our Commonwealth. We have advocated for the creation and funding of student teacher stipends, and we are working to make sure there are diverse policies and programs statewide and locally to rebuild our teacher pipeline. #PANeedsTeachers is led by Teach Plus Pennsylvania and The National Center on Education and the Economy. For more information, www.paneedsteachers.com/
Teach Plus: The mission of Teach Plus is to empower excellent, experienced, and diverse teachers to take leadership over key policy and practice issues that affect their students’ success. Since 2009, Teach Plus has developed thousands of teacher leaders across the country to exercise their leadership in shaping education policy and improving teaching and learning, to create an education system driven by access and excellence for all. For more information, www.teachplus.org
NCEE: Since 1988, The National Center on Education and the Economy (NCEE) has been researching the world’s best-performing education systems to give states and districts the tools they need to become world class. NCEE has been a leader in U.S. education from policy to practice, producing reports that have led to landmark national legislation, supporting states in redesigning their education systems, and providing rigorous, proven support to more education leaders than any other organization. NCEE’s dedicated, diverse, and experienced staff are working with teachers, school leaders, district leadership teams, and state policymakers to create the highest-performing, most equitable systems of education in the world. For more information, visit www.ncee.org.