A recent report from CBS This Morning highlighted the teacher shortage affecting rural America. Reporters traveled to Simla, Colorado, where teachers statewide have among the lowest pay of any other state in the nation.

The Big Sandy School District in Simla has just 335 students ranging from pre-kindergarten through high school, attending one campus. School officials said that at one time, a teacher position would draw up to 30 applicants, but now may not draw even one.

A major concern for prospective teachers is the lack of affordable housing. One kindergarten teacher described living in a camper in a field outside the school for a year. Her annual salary at the time was $35,000.

To recruit more teachers to Big Sandy, school officials have resorted to recruiting retired instructors or even assisting teachers-in-training to gain alternative teaching licenses. In one case, Big Sandy hired a waitress to fill a position while expediting her teaching program.

 

Watch the full report from CBS This Morning here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qrbIBMzBPpE