North Dakota Schools May Soon Use Industry Professionals to Fill Vacancies

With the teacher shortage in North Dakota becoming a bigger problem by the day, Superintendent for Public Instruction Kristin Baesler has proposed an idea that could be good for students and school districts alike.

The state Education Standards and Practices Board is working on drafting language that would allow school districts in North Dakota to hire industry professionals to teach in their area of expertise if no qualified licensed teacher can be found. The hopes is that this will allow the districts to fill more of the almost 200 vacant teaching positions in the state.

The district would first have to apply for a hardship waver to use the new rules to hire professionals in the community.

The new language is expected to be approved by Gov. Dalrymple before the start of the 2015/2016 school year.

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