Gordon-Booth Measure to Address Early Childhood Teachers Shortage Moves to Governor

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – To address the teacher shortage in Illinois, state Rep. Jehan Gordon-Booth, D-Peoria, recently passed legislation that would specifically address the need for more Early Childhood educators.

“Study after study has shown that quality, early childhood education can greatly improve children’s success later in their life,” Gordon-Booth said. “That is why investing in early childcare and making sure teachers can provide the one-on-one support children need is crucial.”

Currently, Early Childhood teachers must have a Professional Education License (PEL) in order to be able to work at preschools across the state. In order to put more teachers in the classroom and reduce the teacher shortage, Gordon-Booth passed Senate Bill 1829 that would allow individuals pursuing their PEL to be able to teach in an early childhood classroom if they meet minimum requirements put in place by the State Board of Education.

“This legislation helps everyone,” Gordon-Booth said. “Our children will receive more support from qualified instructors, and people trying to finish their degree will hopefully have less student loans since they can be working at the same time. I am committed to finding more solutions like this to help address the teacher shortage we are seeing across the state.”

Senate Bill 1829 passed the General Assembly and now goes to the governor for his approval.