Teacher workforce planning starts with better data.
A national scan of state teacher workforce data systems shows what states currently make public, where critical gaps remain, and what it will take to build clearer visibility into teacher supply, demand, and preparation pathways.
Authors:
Tuan D. Nguyen, University of Missouri
Paul Bruno, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
What the national scan found
The report examines teacher workforce data systems across all 50 states and the District of Columbia. It finds that many states have some data infrastructure in place, but public data on teacher vacancies, teacher mobility, underqualification, and teacher preparation pipelines remains incomplete, inconsistent, or difficult to access.
States have active SLDS infrastructure
Forty states have an active and operational state longitudinal data system, while ten states and D.C. do not.
States have a teacher vacancy count
Vacancy data remains one of the hardest measures to find. Only 13 states have a vacancy count in the scan.
States show underqualification by subject
Only nine states provide underqualification data by subject area, limiting insight into where staffing challenges are most concentrated.
States provide enrollment / completion data
Seven states provide teacher enrollment data and eleven states provide teacher completion data. Most states still do not provide teacher enrollment and completion data publicly or in a timely manner.
A clearer framework for understanding teacher workforce gaps
Teacher shortages are often discussed as a single problem. This report breaks the issue into the data points leaders need to understand supply, demand, and where gaps are most urgent.
Vacancy
Vacancy data shows where schools are unable to fill positions. It is one of the clearest measures of staffing gaps, but it is still not publicly available in many states.
Underqualification
Underqualification data can reveal staffing challenges even when vacancies are not reported, especially when teachers are working outside their certification area or without standard credentials.
Turnover and Mobility
Turnover, leaving, and switching data help distinguish whether teachers are moving schools, changing districts, or exiting the profession entirely.
Teacher Production
Teacher enrollment and completion data help leaders understand the preparation pipeline, but the most consistent federal sources often lag behind current workforce needs.
