This school year, the percentage of non-certified teachers in Texas schools is the highest in the state’s history; a former Cy-Fair ISD Superintendent warns this is harmful for kids.
Last march, the Texas Education Agency released a report showing that the percentage of non-certified teachers in public schools reached 34% in 2024, a historic high.
In an op-ed for the Houston Chronicle, former Cy-Fair ISD Superintendent, Dr. Mark Henry, warned this practice serves to fill a short-term gap, but creates a long-term problem. He said that teachers without certification struggle to manage large groups of students and don’t know how to guide them or build trust with them.
Moreover, he noted that fewer than half of new uncertified teachers stay in the profession after three years, depriving students of a deeper connection with the teacher.
“When we fill classrooms with uncertified or temporary educators, we deprive students of this crucial connection,” Henry wrote. “What’s equally important: Every educator deserves the full wrap-around support system of a certification process — whether that is through a four-year university or a high-quality alternative certification program.”
Henry also expressed that while he was superintendent, his team did their best to offer competitive salaries and opportunities for professional development to help certified teachers stay in schools. However, he noted that this is not possible without the help of lawmakers.
“Nearly every school is cutting budgets and consolidating positions,” he wrote. “Teachers need lawmakers to think back on when they were students. None of us would be where we are today without that one teacher who believed in us and made us feel like we could be anything we dreamed of. Texas schools need more resources to invest in high-quality teachers for our students. Ways those dollars could be used include offsetting certification costs through scholarships or grants.”
Texas lawmakers haven’t increased funding for public schools since 2019, despite growing inflation and higher costs each year. Last year, Gov. Greg Abbott said he would refuse to sign a bill increasing public school funding into law without a school voucher program attached to it. Critics argue vouchers would further defund public education.
Despite this, Henry expressed that education is a career worth pursuing because it “allows you to make a lasting impact on countless lives.”
“The difference you can make as a teacher is priceless,” he wrote. “It’s time we ensure the teaching profession remains a respected, valued career that attracts the best and brightest to guide the next generation.”