Harrisburg, PA – Today, Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) Secretary Dr. Carrie Rowe announced that Pennsylvania has officially joined the Interstate Teacher Mobility Compact (ITMC), a multi-state agreement designed to make it easier for licensed, qualified teachers to move between states and get quickly back to work in the classroom — opening up a new avenue to strengthen Pennsylvania’s teacher pipeline and help schools hire experienced teachers.
“One of the Shapiro Administration’s top priorities is recruiting and retaining high-quality educators in schools across the Commonwealth,” said Secretary of Education Dr. Carrie Rowe. “Joining the Interstate Teacher Mobility Compact complements the educator workforce efforts we’ve undertaken over the past three years, and will help Pennsylvania grow its educator workforce by creating new opportunities for current and future teachers.”
The ITMC allows educators who hold eligible licenses in member states to more efficiently obtain equivalent certification in another member state. The ITMC is intended to reduce barriers for qualified educators, particularly those in military families, and to help states address persistent educator shortages.
Joining the ITMC helps member states expand their educator pipeline by lowering administrative barriers for out-of-state teachers and increasing the pool of qualified applicants for Pennsylvania schools, particularly in hard-to-staff subject areas and regions. It also provides support for military families by reducing licensure barriers for military spouses, reinforcing Pennsylvania’s commitment to workforce participation and family stability.
Governor Josh Shapiro believes that growing Pennsylvania’s economy and creating opportunity for future generations starts in the classroom. Over the past three years, his Administration has made strategically targeted investments to strengthen Pennsylvania’s educator workforce and make sure there’s a highly qualified teacher in every classroom.
To tackle Pennsylvania’s teacher shortage, the Shapiro Administration has:
- Reduced teacher certification processing times by more than 10 weeks.
- Made experience-based certificates free to aspiring educators: Experience-based certificates are an alternative to emergency permits and provide new teachers with both mentorship and a pathway to a highly valuable permanent teaching credential.
- Created a new Career and Technical Education (CTE) program in Education for high school students: The new Career and Technical Education (CTE) program in Education for high school students has also shown promise in helping students earn industry recognized credentials prior to graduating high school. Since launching three years ago, 40 public schools representing 24 counties have received PDE approval to offer the CTE program in Education.
- Created and expanded the Student Teacher Support Program to provide a stipend to student teachers: The Student Teacher Support Program – administered by the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency – provides stipends to eligible student teachers in Pennsylvania to ensure student teachers are compensated for their hard work. Student teaching is a fulltime job – one that typically keeps student teachers from working another paid job – and the stipend program lowers a barrier to entry into teaching for students who would otherwise struggle to afford to student teach. Last year, student teacher stipends supported more than 2,300 student teachers in Pennsylvania. To build on this progress, Governor Shapiro’s 2026-27 budget increases funding for student teacher stipends by $10 million, bringing total support to $40 million annually.
- Made it easier for Pennsylvanians to find jobs in education: In 2025, PDE launched the newly refreshed Teach in PA website to help individuals interested in obtaining a career in education more easily find relevant job opportunities.
- Launched a first-of-its-kind teacher apprenticeship program partnership: Through a partnership between the departments of Education and Labor & Industry (L&I), the Shapiro Administration announced a $7.76 million investment in grants to 16 organizations throughout Pennsylvania to start their own earn-as-you-learn teacher apprenticeship programs.
Under Governor Shapiro’s leadership, Pennsylvania has increased funding for our schools by over $3 billion since the Governor took office, totaling $11.85 billion invested into Pennsylvania’s students this year. The investments in this year’s budget build on this foundation, including a $565 million increase through the bipartisan adequacy and tax equity formula for a total of $1.9 billion driven out to the schools that need them most; a $58 million increase to Basic Education Funding, for a total of $8.32 billion; and a $55 million increase to Special Education Funding, for a total of $1.58 billion to support students with disabilities and special needs.
The 2026-27 budget also continues funding universal free breakfast, menstrual hygiene products at no cost to students, school infrastructure repairs, and school safety and mental health supports. Over 800 schools have expanded mental health services, and more than 200 counselors have been hired since the Shapiro Administration began.