Rachael Spencer (right) signs her Future Teachers Pledge along with Brandon Valley High School classmates in May of 2022. Spencer is now at Augustana University with plans to become an educator for the deaf.

Concern over the future of the teaching profession in South Dakota has led to more aggressive ef for ts by education officials to train and inspire a new generation of classroom leaders, with par ticular emphasis on elementary school classrooms.

The push comes as kindergarten through 12th grade teacher shortages worsen across the state, a trend driven by belowaverage salaries and dissatisfaction in…