The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1920-09-20
GREAT SHORTAGE
OF SCHOOL TEACHERS
Many Rural Schools Closed in Northern
New England - Vermont Not
Seriously Affected.


BOSTON, Sept. 20. - Shortage of
teachers, particularly in rural districts,
has marked the opening of schools
throughout northern New England this
fall. Maine and New Hampshire re-
port serious lack of instructors and
consequent delay in opening in many
districts. Massachusetts with difficult
ty has been able to obtain enough
, teachers, but has been obliged to ac-
cept many who have had no experience
or special training. Vermont alone has
not felt the shortage.
Higher salaries paid in the West have
attracted many former New England
teachers.
That the shortage in Massachusetts
this fall is one of quality and not guam
tity, is the opinion of George Gardner,
who is in charge of placing Massachu
sets teachers. He says that practi-
cally all vacancies in the rural districts
have been filed, though with difficulty,
and only through employment of teach
ers who have had merely a high school
education Good teachers do not wish
to go into the country with it's lack of
conveniences and social life, he says,
when he can place them in the city at
higher pay. The vacancies in the city
which he fills in this way are made by
teachers leaving for more highly paid
positions in the West or leaving the pro-
fession altogether to enter business.
The result is that entirely inexperienced
instructors are alone available for the
country districts.
In Maine, State Superintendent of
CaI IL n Lrr
already received returns from 100 of
the 140 school centers, reports a short
age of six special, 80 high school and
100 rural and grade school teachers.
There are, moreover, 800 substitute
teachers who are poorly prepared for
their work.
Lack of instructors has prevented
opening in 139 rural district and high
schools Many of these will combine
and the pupils be transferred.
About so schools in rural districts of
New Hampshire cannot be opened be-
| cause of the teacher shortage. State
Commissioner E. G. Butterfeld is max
| ing arrangements to transport pupils
from some of the towns where schools
are closed, to other towns; but he says
there are many schools where trans
portation is impossible and for which
| tea chers must be found.
Vermont is not suffering from the
| shortage of teachers that appears to
| be existing in other states, owing to
| the efforts of the teachers registration
| bureau established at Burlington
| last April by Commissioner of Eduea-
ton NJ B. Hillegas This fall the state
| has issued only 81 special teacher
permits to young women as compared
with nearly $50 last year, with the ad-
ditional ruling which grants permits
only to those who have had advanced
training or have been graduated from
| high school prior to 1920.
I The bureau of registration has been
| able to take care of the scattering re-
quests for teachers from the rural dis
| tricts. In some eases children are be
ing transported to more centralized
school, but only to obtain better adj
ministration and not because of lack
| of teachers. In the early summer, mem
| bers of the commission visited colleges,
| selected the best teacher material and
| signed contracts on behalf of the state
| placing the new applicants as soon as
| the demand occurred in the fall.