New School Year Means New Faces as Teacher Turnover Remains High
As Missouri students start a new school year, many will find familiar faces missing from the front of the classroom. This is because teacher turnover in the state remains stubbornly high – more than twice the national average.
Teacher turnover in Missouri is at 14.6 percent, according to research from the PRiME Center. Meanwhile, the national average is roughly 7 percent.
PRiME researcher J. Cameron Anglum, Ph.D. found that teacher turnover in Missouri is particularly high among early-career teachers who are in the first five years of their teaching career. It’s also especially high among teachers of color, and teachers in urban, rural and disproportionally low-income school environments.
While that sounds like a load of bad news, Anglum’s research identified a small glimmer of good news: teacher turnover rates have dropped from a pandemic-era all-time high of 15.5 percent. Still, it presents major challenges for school leaders and students alike.
Teacher turnover is linked to declines in student outcomes. This makes retention an important factor in student success.
Early-career teachers are at the greatest risk of leaving. The likelihood of first-year teachers leaving Missouri public education is 70 percent higher than the average teacher.
Retention is especially low during the early years of work. Just 6 in 10 teachers remain in Missouri public education through their sixth year.
Supporting early-career teachers should be a priority. Education leaders and policymakers must strategize on ways to improve working conditions and opportunities for those starting off in the field.
So if your student walked into school this year and didn’t see as many familiar faces, you’re not imagining things. Teacher turnover in Missouri is real and significant.
Higher turnover places outsized pressure on the early-career teacher pipeline, including teacher preparation programs and recruitment of new teachers. This data speaks to a need for policymakers to step in and offer solutions to change the trajectory.
To learn more, check out Anglum’s full report.
Published September 2026
MORE FROM THE PRiME BLOGS
As Missouri students start a new school year, many will find familiar faces missing from the front of the classroom. This is because teacher turnover in the state remains stubbornly high – more than twice the national average.
Teacher turnover in Missouri is at 14.6 percent, according to research from the PRiME Center. Meanwhile, the national average is roughly 7 percent.