The time is right to become a teacher in New York

While fewer people have been choosing teaching as a profession lately, now is the perfect time to enter the field.

Teaching offers competitive salaries: Median teacher pay on Long Island has surpassed $120,000. Teachers enjoy excellent health and retirement benefits, strong job security and clear pathways for career advancement. Most importantly, a career in education provides the opportunity to truly make an impact on students' lives.

New York State faces a critical teacher shortage. The state estimated in 2022 that 180,000 new teachers would be needed in the next decade.

In the last 14 years, enrollment in teacher education programs in New York has dropped 25.2% — from 61,904 in 2011-12 to 46,294 in 2025-26. Fewer teachers are becoming credentialed. Attrition in preparation programs has worsened.

There was a slight uptick, post-COVID, due to online teacher preparation programs that offered flexibility and convenience. At that time, teaching seemed to offer a career path unavailable in many other professions. Since then, however, enrollment has been steadily decreasing.

Many factors seem to have influenced that move away. Most recently, the emergence of artificial intelligence has dominated the conversation about the future of teaching. Teachers have to get more creative with how they approach tests and assignments since all students now have this powerful tool available which makes cheating much more difficult to detect. Some have even suggested that AI will reduce the need for human teachers altogether.

These concerns are not founded in a true understanding of the direct impact and power of teachers to transform the lives of those they instruct. Teaching became professionalized in the 20th century, but the idea of apprenticeship and learning from teachers goes back to ancient civilizations. Teaching requires a level of nuance, emotion and genuine connection that can only be provided by a human approach to the work. A chatbot can share information, but only a teacher can provide the empathy, insight and personal relationships that inspire students to see the very best in themselves.

At Molloy University's School of Education and Human Services, we recently hosted a weeklong Summer Academy for rising high school juniors and seniors focused on career pathways for "Changemakers Who Care." Students learned about the benefits of choosing a career in teaching. During their final reflections, they expressed how meaningful the experience was in helping them consider professions, such as ours, that are not always the most appreciated in society but are in fact among the most valuable.

Programs like this offer high school students opportunities to learn from experts about a range of career paths and discover where their interests and talents may lead them. All students should have access to such experiences as early as possible. Seeing the excitement and enthusiasm of these young people reaffirmed what we already know: Teaching is an excellent career pathway for those who want to be financially independent, have opportunities for growth and truly make a difference.

Now more than ever, the impending surge in retirements and rising salaries will create significant job opportunities for aspiring teachers. But the most significant reward of all remains the potential to change a life.

This guest essay reflects the views of Melissa McCardle, dean of Molloy University's School of Education and Human Services, and Vicky Giouroukakis, its associate dean.