 Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, U.S. schools were able to fill just 54 percent of the approximately 250,000 teacher absences each day. As many schools reopen in the fall, they will face a growing number of teacher absences due to the pandemic, exacerbating the teacher shortage. Twelve percent of teachers say the pandemic may lead them to leave the profession even though they were not planning to do so before the crisis. 