Illinois teacher Denise Harts retired this past June after a 35-year career. And yet, come September, she welcomed a classroom full of third graders. A colleague had asked Harts to cover her classroom as a long-term substitute, and then her old principal asked her to stay longer. “I tried to retire!” says Harts.

This year, many retired educators may find themselves unretired, as school officials reach out to them to fill gaps in their classrooms, and lawmakers smooth the way with new laws protecting the retirees’ pensions.

A Teaching Emergency

Districts and states across the U.S. have a big problem: A shortage of teachers that is “real, large, and growing, and worse than we thought,” according to an Economic Policy Institute (EPI) analysis. By 2025, the shortfall of educators nationwide could reach 200,000.

“There’s no question that something must change— and quickly,” says NEA President Lily Eskelsen García. “Baby boomers are retiring, and the candidates who could fill their jobs are simply not there.”

Source: Teacher Shortage Sends Retired Teachers Back to the Classroom