Roughly 1,000 classroom and special education teaching positions are currently open across the state, not to mention the roughly 3,000 other education jobs open on the state's website.

[...]

At least four bills are on the table in the Iowa House, aiming to put more people in the classroom to teach kids.

House File 2085 aims to give an alternative teaching license to someone with a bachelor's degree, who's at least 26 years old. That person will also be required to complete an alternative teaching certification program and a PRAXIS exam before teaching.

Republican Representative Dustin Hite, the Chair of the House Education Committee, plans to introduce something similar for people to teach in grades 7-12.

"Maybe it's business, maybe they're working for a chemical company, and they're saying, you know, 'I'm done with that job, I'm done with the rat race,' if you will. But, I'd love to be able to give back to my community through becoming a teacher," he said in an interview Monday.

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