HARRISBURG – A package of bills is being introduced to address PA’s teacher shortage. The package would raise the minimum salary from $18,500 to $50,000 initially, and then by an additional $2,500 annually until it reaches $60,000. Another would create a grant program to support high-need schools in areas that have hard-to-staff teaching positions by recruiting students, paraprofessionals, and parents to pursue teaching in their local school district. Other bills would create a grant program for colleges to create programs for paraprofessionals to become certified teachers along with the creation of a Teacher Loan Forgiveness Program, a Teacher Scholarship Program, and support/mentor program for first-year teachers in districts with high turnover.
