Dive Brief:

• The South Dakota House Appropriations Committee approved a proposal Friday that offers financial aid to school employees who agree to get their teaching degree and return to the district for five years.
• While the committee approved the proposal, it also de-funded the initial request for $1.5 million, with the hope of actually making the bill a realistic sell in the future.
• The bill would allow 40 future teachers to take part in the program each year.

Dive Insight:

The bill's sponsor, Republican Rep. Thomas Holmes of Sioux Falls, says getting rural teachers to stay in the classroom for more than year is challenging, and this bill aims to create more incentives. South Dakota has been all about teacher recruitment and retention lately, most likely because a summer survey by the School Administrators of South Dakota published found that 30% of the state's unfilled teaching positions remain unfilled.

Jobs in rural and urban districts are typically the most difficult to keep filled, and states across the nation are doing their part to ensure potential educators are encouraged to take those positions. Probably the most recent program to come about is South Carolina's new teacher recruitment and retention initiative, announced in January by Gov. Nikki Haley. The plan calls for $6.9 billion to be allocated toward finding and keeping good educators — specifically in rural areas or communities with high teacher turnover.