TY  - JOUR
AB  - Recent survey evidence documents pandemic-era challenges in filling teacher vacancies and hiring from too-small applicant pools. However, direct evidence quantifying changes in teacher supply since the onset of the pandemic is scarce. Using longitudinal teacher job application data from a large southeastern school district, we examine trends in local teacher supply from 2015 to 2023. We find substantial declines in the number of applications per job posting beginning in 2021, with application rates 52% to 75% lower than pre-pandemic projections. These declines are pervasive across both hard-to-staff and easier-to-staff subjects, as well as across higher- and lower-poverty schools. We also document that the new teacher applicant pool was 23% to 31% smaller than pre-pandemic projections during this period. These findings advance our understanding of current teacher staffing challenges and underscore the need for research in additional contexts to establish the broader prevalence of these declines.
AU  - Chi, Olivia L.
AU  - Estrera, Elc
AU  - Lenard, Matthew A.
PY  - 2026
ST  - Trends in Local Teacher Supply Since the COVID-19 Pandemic: Evidence from Teacher Job Applications
TI  - Trends in Local Teacher Supply Since the COVID-19 Pandemic: Evidence from Teacher Job Applications
UR  - http://www.edworkingpapers.com/ai26-1489
ER  -