Small urban counties drive Nebraska's statewide decrease in teacher vacancies
The Nebraska Department of Education reported a statewide drop in schools leaving positions vacant when they can't find fully qualified teachers. An analysis of the Department's data shows small urban counties accounted for most of that drop, while rural and large urban counties saw little change. The chart below shows the percentage of unfilled positions that were left vacant over the past three school years.
Line chart showing the percentage of teaching positions left vacant in Nebraska by county type from the 2023–24 to 2025–26 school years. Small urban counties start highest at 36%, rise to 45% in 2024–25, then drop sharply to 23% in 2025–26. Rural counties decline from 30% to 20%, then tick up slightly to 22%. Large urban counties fall from 17% to 9% and then level off near 10%. Overall, the biggest improvement occurs in small urban counties, while rural and large urban areas change more modestly.
