Students are starting to return to school this month.

But some students will notice their teachers are not returning with them.

For many reasons, teachers across the U.S. are leaving their jobs. And schools are having a hard time finding new ones to replace them.

The problem is worse in states that are growing or have problems with school funding. But it is also an issue in rural areas and in poor cities, such as Detroit.

5. Experts say there are many reasons teachers are leaving their classrooms: Many are old enough to retire. They are part of the baby-boom generation. They were born between 1946 and 1964. A “boom” refers to an increase in the rate of births. That large group is now retiring. The recession is over. Teachers are finding new jobs with more pay outside of education. Pay remains low in many areas. In Oklahoma, teachers have not had a raise in nearly 10 years. The average teacher’s salary in the state is $44, 128. That ranks 49^th out of 50 states. Some former teachers say the focus on student testing has changed the classroom and how they teach. States often make laws to change the way they teach. Some teachers say state lawmakers do not respect them. And school funding keeps going down.

Rebecca Simcoe was a high school English teacher in the Oklahoma city of Tulsa.

We used to be treated as professionals, ” she said. Teachers had more freedom in their classrooms. They could use their talents and strengths.

Now their jobs “are just getting these kids to pass tests, ” she said. Simcoe left teaching last year to do nonprofit work.

School districts say it is especially hard to find teachers for certain subjects. They need math and science teachers. They also need those who teach languages and students with special needs.

Some teachers try to help by teaching new subjects. Oklahoma officials are giving emergency licenses to 215 teachers this year. This will allow them to teach subjects they do not normally teach. Just 71 special licenses were approved last year.

Districts are also trying new ways to bring teachers from other states.

In Kansas, a highway sign tells drivers that a local school district is hiring. This past school year 3, 720 teachers left the state, retired, or took other jobs. That is up more than 70 percent from two years ago.

The Clark County School District in Nevada has hundreds of open jobs. It is offering bonuses. It sends people to find teachers at coalleges and job fairs around the country. It even put up billboards in New York City’s Times Square.

In many states, experts say college still produce more new teachers than jobs. The problem is getting those teachers in the places and subject areas where they are needed.

News for You, August 26, 2015

Planned Pet Center at JFK Airport Will Allow Animals to Travel in Style

Some jet-setting pets and other animals will enjoy the good life at JFK airport. The New York City airport plans to build a luxury terminal that will serve all sorts of traveling animals.

Horses and cows can spend time between flights in heated and cooled stalls. Dogs can stretch out in suites with flat-screen TVs. There will even be places for penguins to mate in privacy.

JFK says “the ARK” is the world’s first air terminal for animals. It could serve more than 70, 000 animals flying in and out of New York each year.

4. The ARK will open in 2016. The 178, 000-square-foot space is expected to cost $48 million. It will replace JFK’s current Vetport. That 10, 000-square-foot center was built in the 1950s.

The ARK will serve as both a shelter and a quarantine center. Quarantine is a waiting period during which animals are checked for diseases. Racehorses, livestock, and zoo animals often have to wait in quarantine. So do dome pets.

Quarantine helps stop the spread of diseases from place to place. If an animal is still disease-free after a set number of days, it can safely enter a new country.

The ARK will offer stalls for up to 70 horses and 180 cattle. The stalls will be filled with hay. They will include showers. There will be spaces for goats, pigs and sheep. There will also be spaces for birds and wild animals.

8. Paradise 4 Paws, a private company, will run a 20, 000-square-foot luxury “resort” for dogs there. It will offer bone-shaped splashing pools, massages and “pawdicures” with colored nail “pawlish.”

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