Michigan’s House Bill 4549, introduced by Rep. Nate Shannon, has been amended to make 21 the minimum age for short-term substitute teachers in the state. Originally, the bill proposed that short-term substitute teachers for grades kindergarten through 8th grade could be as young as 18 if they were enrolled in a teacher preparation program. However, the legislation was amended on Tuesday to make the minimum age 21. The bill aims to combat the years-long teacher and substitute teacher shortage in the state and nationally. Current requirements for Michigan substitutes is the completion of at least 60 college credit hours.
As mentioned in WWMT News, proposed legislation in Michigan’s Legislature is aiming to combat the state’s teacher and substitute teacher shortage by reducing the minimum age for short-term substitute teachers. House Bill 4549, introduced by Rep. Nate Shannon, initially proposed that short-term substitute teachers for grades K-8 could be as young as 18, as long as they were enrolled in a teacher preparation program. However, the legislation was recently amended to make the minimum age 21.
Short-term substitute teachers are defined as spending a maximum of ten days in one classroom. Shannon’s legislation would allow anyone aged 21 and older to teach K-12 classes, as long as they have a high school diploma. Shannon, a former teacher himself, said he was motivated to introduce the legislation to combat the years-long teacher and substitute teacher shortage in the state and nationwide.
“This isn’t the policy that I thought I would ever be pursuing, it’s not something that I would have been in favor for five, ten years ago,” Shannon said. “But we have a crisis. And that crisis needs to be addressed.”
Michigan’s current requirements for substitutes include the completion of at least 60 college credit hours, a standard that has been lowered in recent decades as teachers have become more difficult to hire. Shannon’s legislation is intended to be a short-term solution to the long-term issue of teacher shortages, with the legislation set to sunset in June 2025 if signed into law.
“It’s just a bridge to try to give us some time so that we can implement some of the programs that we’re working on,” said Shannon.
However, the legislation would not apply to the requirements for special education substitute teachers. HB 4549 passed through the House Education Committee after its introduction in mid-May.
While the legislation has received some criticism, including concerns about the lack of training and experience for younger substitute teachers, Shannon is hopeful that the bill will help alleviate the state’s teacher shortage crisis. Michigan is not alone in facing a teacher shortage, as many other states are also struggling to recruit and retain qualified educators.
In addition to lowering the minimum age for substitute teachers, Michigan has also implemented other measures to address the teacher shortage. These include offering student loan forgiveness to teachers, increasing funding for teacher recruitment and retention programs, and expanding alternative certification pathways for individuals interested in becoming teachers.
To put a stop to, the hope is that these efforts will help ensure that Michigan students have access to qualified and experienced educators, even in the face of a nationwide teacher shortage. While it remains to be seen whether Shannon’s legislation will be signed into law, it is clear that the state is taking the issue seriously and working to find solutions to the ongoing teacher shortage.
Photo Credit: wwmt.com
