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Northwest Ohio educators call for long-term investment in education after COVID-19

Perrysburg Schools Superintendent Tom Hosler says it is getting harder to find teachers and we are headed toward a teacher shortage in the next few years.

TOLEDO, Ohio — Funding for education continues to be a topic of debate. The COVID-19 pandemic has put an even greater strain on resources and staff.

Julianna Pyle is an early education student at the University of Toledo Judith Herb College of Education. She is preparing to graduate, but like a lot of current teachers these days, she already sees the writing on the wall.

"We definitely need some help with funding," she said, "and with knowing the importance of education and what teachers do, it's not just babysitting."

UToledo College of Education Dean Raymond Witte says that a big part of the funding problem is finding and recruiting teachers. And the pandemic, he says, has pulled back the curtain on what it takes to do the job.

"If there's ever a time [for conversation], it's going to be now," he added, "because all parents are realizing, oh my god teachers are wonderful, because they have had it with their kids and realized how hard it is to teach."

Perrysburg Schools Superintendent Tom Hosler has spent the last few years helping legislators create a new, fairer school funding formula for Ohio schools. And he says teachers are a big part of that.

"The dollars that we get go into the people that are serving students," he said, "so the more that we're able to structure pay and make it attractive to individuals, that's key."

Both Witte and Hosler believe the time is right for change. They believe having an active teacher in the White House - in first lady Dr. Jill Biden - is promising.

RELATED: Will Jill Biden teach again while serving as first lady, living in DC?

"Having someone out in the field is really important because you do really get a sense of what's happening," Witte said, "and then hopefully she brings that back to the White House and that's a part of the conversation."

Hosler hopes the pandemic shows the need for for more long-term investment in education.

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