Seattle, Washington – Seattle – Luke Eisen prepares for his sophomore year in Seattle.

Luke is a student at a special needs school, and his mother Sarah says she has been in a precarious learning environment in the last year.

“He didn’t know the teacher,” said Sarah Eisen. There was only one teacher.”

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Luke did not have a qualified special education teacher for most of his previous school year. Sarah is worried that this will have a negative impact on his long-term education.

Eizensala is preparing her son, Luke, for his sophomore year of high school.
(Fox News)

“I’m frustrated,” Eisen said. “I’m angry. I’m upset. I don’t want to give up either. I want to fight for my son’s education.”

In 2019, 43 states reported a shortage of special education teachers. Last year it jumped to 48. Many teachers left because of the pandemic. And it became tougher for the remaining teachers.

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Special Education Teacher Daniel Kovac said, “So many teachers have retired because of COVID-19 and we are emotionally drained from what we’ve been through.” .”

This shortage has led more schools to use substitutes who may not be fully qualified to teach special education.

In 2019, 43 states reported a shortage of special education teachers.
(Fox News)

“It is difficult not to have teachers in the classroom who are trained and certified to work with people with disabilities,” Kovac said.

Luke underwent a year and a half of remote learning during the pandemic. Sarah doesn’t know how her son is going to stay on track.

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“I’m not confident next year,” Eisen said. “Luke has three more years of school left and sadly we still don’t have a reliable teacher.”

48 states are reporting special education teacher shortages in 2022.
(Fox News)

Sarah feels she has run out of options for Luke to get the education he needs.

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“I feel like a failure as a parent,” Eisen said. “And this is completely out of my control, but at the same time, I feel like I’m letting my child down.