One of the main reasons that schools transition to a four-day school week is the teacher shortage and the inability to retain teachers (especially due to pay inequity from district to district). This website from the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education allows you to track the teacher shortage, district by district, over a number of years. In 2024, around 9% of public school courses in Missouri were taught by non-certified teachers, and the number of non-certified teachers is up to around 2,000 compared to 2023.
Link to Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
Certification Summary Database (Live updates)
https://apps.dese.mo.gov/MCDS/Reports/SSRS_Print.aspx?Reportid=3d5741e3-6ef0-42e7-a358-c7ad24d6fdeb
Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education Blue Ribbon Commission Report
(June-October 2022)
"Strengthening Teacher Recruitment and Retention in Missouri"
https://dese.mo.gov/media/pdf/brc-final-report
"Teacher Shortages in Missouri"
from Blue Ribbon Commission Report", May 4, 2022.
https://dese.mo.gov/media/pdf/teacher-shortages-missouri
Additional Teacher Shortage Resources
Nguyen, T. D., Lam, C. B., & Bruno, P. (2022). Is there a national teacher shortage? A systematic examination of reports of teacher shortages in the United States (EdWorkingPaper:22-631). Annenberg Institute at Brown University. https://doi.org/10.26300/76eq-hj32
Saenz-Armstrong, P. (2023, August 23). Data brief: How do trends in teacher preparation enrollment and completion vary by state? National Council on Teacher Quality. https://www.nctq.org/blog/Data-Brief:-How-do-trends-in-teacher-preparation-enrollment-and-completion-vary-by-state
Will, M. (2022, March 22). Fewer people are getting teacher degrees. Prep programs sound the alarm. Education Week. https://www.edweek.org/teaching-learning/fewer-people-are-getting-teacher-degrees-prep-programs-sound-the-alarm/2022/03#:~:text=Between%20the%202008%2D09%20and,declined%20by%20almost%20a