Footnotes and Sources

  1. Institute of Education Sciences. “Eight Percent of Public School Teachers Left Teaching in 2021.” IES, https://ies.ed.gov/learn/press-release/eight-percent-public-school-teachers-left-teaching-2021-rate-unchanged-last-measured-2012.

  2. Learning Policy Institute. Teacher Turnover in the United States. https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/product/teacher-turnover-united-states-brief.

  3. Teacher Pensions. “Did COVID-19 Lead to a Surge in Teacher Retirements? Data Are the Answer: No.” https://www.teacherpensions.org/blog/did-covid-19-lead-surge-teacher-retirements-data-are-and-answer-no.

  4. Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. “The COVID Retirement Surge.” https://www.minneapolisfed.org/article/2022/the-covid-retirement-surge.

  5. Jiayi Tong, et al. “Research Paper.” arXiv, 2025, https://arxiv.org/abs/2501.01260.

  6. The Washington Post. “COVID-19 Pandemic Education Impact.” https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2025/03/13/covid-19-pandemic-education-impact.

  7. “The Impact of COVID-19 on Education.” PubMed Central, https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9288205/.

  8. Teachers' Retirement System of Kentucky. 2023 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report. https://trs.ky.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/2023-TRS-ACFR-Final.pdf.

  9. Alabama Public Radio. “Alabama Saw Fewer Teachers Retire Last School Year.” https://www.apr.org/news/2023-08-01/alabama-saw-fewer-teachers-retire-last-school-year-fewest-since-2013.

  10. Teachers Retirement System of Texas. “Financial and Actuarial Highlights.” https://www.trs.texas.gov/fund-insights/financial-and-actuarial-highlights.

  11. Teachers' Retirement System of Kentucky. “TRS Receives Full Funding Plus for 2024–26.” https://trs.ky.gov/news/trs-receives-full-funding-plus-for-2024-26/.

  12. Alabama Daily News. “Alabama Teacher Retirements Spike After Two-Year Dip.” https://aldailynews.com/alabama-teacher-retirements-spike-after-two-year-dip/.

  13. Teachers Retirement System of Texas. “Fund Insights.” https://www.trs.texas.gov/about/who-we-are/fund-insights.

  14. National Center for Education Statistics. Teacher Attrition and Mobility Report 2024. https://nces.ed.gov.qipservices.com/pubs2024/2024034.pdf.

  15. National Education Association. Rankings and Estimates Report 2025. https://www.nea.org/sites/default/files/2025-04/2025_rankings_and_estimates_report.pdf.

  16. “COVID-19 and Education Outcomes.” PubMed Central, https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9479001/.

  17. “Teacher Stress and Burnout After COVID-19.” PubMed, https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36118449/.

  18. “Education Research Study.” SAGE Journals, https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.3102/0013189X211004138.

  19. University of Phoenix. “Student Behavior and Mental Health in the Aftermath of COVID-19.” https://www.phoenix.edu/research/news/2022/student-behavior-and-mental-health-in-the-aftermath-of-covid-19.html.

  20. University of Phoenix. “Student Behavior and Mental Health in the Aftermath of COVID-19.” https://www.phoenix.edu/research/news/2022/student-behavior-and-mental-health-in-the-aftermath-of-covid-19.html.

  21. CNBC. “Among Rich Nations, U.S. Retirement System Needs Work.” https://www.cnbc.com/2012/04/16/among-rich-nations-us-retirement-system-needs-work.html.

  22. Pew Research Center. “Teens, Social Media and Technology 2024.” https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2024/12/12/teens-social-media-and-technology-2024.

  23. Pew Research Center. “10 Facts About Teens and Social Media.” https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2025/07/10/10-facts-about-teens-and-social-media/.

  24. Pew Research Center. “72% of U.S. High School Teachers Say Cellphone Distraction Is a Major Problem in the Classroom.” https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2024/06/12/72-percent-of-us-high-school-teachers-say-cellphone-distraction-is-a-major-problem-in-the-classroom/.

  25. Wilhite, Kelsey. “Effect of Student Classroom Cell Phone Usage on Teachers.” Western Kentucky University, https://digitalcommons.wku.edu/theses/1915/.

  26. National Institute on Aging. National Institute on Aging. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, https://www.nia.nih.gov/.

  27. “Mental Health Status of Retired Teachers.” PubMed Central, https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11188469/.