Ashton Marra Published

Study: A Third of W.Va. Teachers Leave Within 4 Years

Female teacher helping students

A new analysis of West Virginia educator data shows school administrators have a higher rate of turnover than classroom teachers in the state. 

The analysis is part of regional study focused on the retention and attrition rates of West Virginia educators.

The study was released by the Regional Education Laboratory Appalachia, a program administered by the U.S. Department of Education.

It found 90 percent of West Virginia teachers stay in the same school from one school year to the next compared to 88 percent of school administrators. Those rates of turnover for both groups were higher in more rural school districts and those with higher rates of poverty.

REL’s analysis also found that 32 percent—almost one third– of first-time teachers in West Virginia leave the profession within four years.

Those statistics prompted the group to recommend that state policymakers focus on recruitment and retention efforts, a recommendation that’s not new in a state that pays one of the lowest teacher salary rates in the country.

REL’s report analyzed personnel data from the West Virginia Department of Education from the 2008-2009 school year to 20012-2013 and district information from the National Center for Education Statistics.