Wisconsin’s increase in emergency teacher licenses raises concerns about educator quality   

As school choice gains traction, Wisconsin public schools are struggling to keep students and recruit enough teachers. 

A brand new report from the Wisconsin Policy Forum (WPF) found emergency teacher licensing increased 20% since 2022. 

Emergency licenses are needed “when the traditional pipeline – schools of education – does not yield enough candidates in their needed areas,” WPF explained. 

“They [public schools] might recruit brand-new teachers with no formal education training. Alternatively, a district may ask experienced or retired teachers, or school support staff, to take on roles for which they are not yet licensed.” 

As of 2024, over 4,500 Wisconsin teachers – or 3.6% – were using emergency licenses. Rates were much higher in the state’s largest school districts such as Milwaukee (5.6%), Green Bay (5.8%), Madison (7%) and Racine (7.4%). 

The most common subject areas for emergency licenses include special education (22%), bilingual positions (23%) and regular and elementary/middle education (11%), which are the two most common types of licenses. 

A 2025 report from the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI) looked into the reasons behind the struggle to find qualified educators. 

Nearly 20% of teachers quit before their third year, the report found. Barely half (55%) continue teaching for seven or more years. The seven-year retention rate was even lower for special education teachers (46%). 

As a result, districts have had to be creative. For example, Milwaukee offered retired teachers a $1,000 bonus to return to work, emphasizing a need for special education teachers. 

WPF concludes its report on emergency licensing with a warning. 

“The general public should understand that teachers are increasingly less likely to be lifelong career educators who were trained in a school of education, and are more likely second-career educators or other nontraditionally trained individuals,” it stated. 

WPF’s report comes on the heels of Wisconsin’s DPI announcing public school enrollment fell by nearly 14,000 students last year.