ODHE & ODE Take Action to Address Teacher Shortage, Oelslager Announces

COLUMBUS - Last week, the Ohio Department of Higher Education and Department of Education were awarded $5.2 million to address Ohio’s educator shortages. The funding will be shared among 9 four-year public and independent colleges and universities that have chancellor-approved educator preparation programs, including those in collaboration with school districts, educational service centers and community colleges.

“This is such a pressing issue in our state, I’m pleased to see ODHE and ODE taking steps to ensure Ohio’s schools are properly staffed,” said State Representative Scott Oelslager (R-North Canton). 

The money comes from the federal Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief fund. The departments have reported it’ll be used to address immediate needs within the profession through a targeted effort: 

• Focus on populations that could enter the workforce within one or two years.
• Focus on specific high-need areas such as special education and STEM disciplines.
• Collaboration amongst awardees and their community college partners to recruit candidates for educator preparation programs.
• Prioritization of student scholarships and other direct student supports to increase educator workforce enrollments.

For more information on the grant process, please visit https://www.ohiohighered.org/educator-shortages.