Public and private elementary and secondary teachers, enrollment, pupil/teacher ratios, and new teacher hires: Selected years, fall 1955 through fall 2030

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Table 208.20.

Year	Teachers (in thousands)				Enrollment (in thousands)				Pupil/teacher ratio				Number of new teacher hires (in thousands)¹
Year	Total	Public	Private		Total	Public	Private		Total	Public	Private		Total		Public		Private
1	2	3		4	5	6		7	8	9		10	11		12		13
1955	1,286	1,141	145	²	35,280	30,680	4,600	²	27.4	26.9	31.7	²	---		---		---
1960	1,600	1,408	192	²	42,181	36,281	5,900	²	26.4	25.8	30.7	²	---		---		---
1965	1,933	1,710	223		48,473	42,173	6,300		25.1	24.7	28.3		---		---		---
1970	2,292	2,059	233		51,257	45,894	5,363		22.4	22.3	23.0		---		---		---
1975	2,453	2,198	255	²	49,819	44,819	5,000	²	20.3	20.4	19.6	²	---		---		---
1976	2,457	2,189	268		49,478	44,311	5,167		20.1	20.2	19.3		---		---		---
1977	2,488	2,209	279		48,717	43,577	5,140		19.6	19.7	18.4		---		---		---
1978	2,479	2,207	272		47,637	42,551	5,086		19.2	19.3	18.7		---		---		---
1979	2,461	2,185	276	²	46,651	41,651	5,000	²	19.0	19.1	18.1	²	---		---		---
1980	2,485	2,184	301		46,208	40,877	5,331		18.6	18.7	17.7		---		---		---
1981	2,440	2,127	313	²	45,544	40,044	5,500	²	18.7	18.8	17.6	²	---		---		---
1982	2,458	2,133	325	²	45,166	39,566	5,600	²	18.4	18.6	17.2	²	---		---		---
1983	2,476	2,139	337		44,967	39,252	5,715		18.2	18.4	17.0		---		---		---
1984	2,508	2,168	340	²	44,908	39,208	5,700	²	17.9	18.1	16.8	²	---		---		---
1985	2,549	2,206	343		44,979	39,422	5,557		17.6	17.9	16.2		---		---		---
1986	2,592	2,244	348	²	45,205	39,753	5,452	²	17.4	17.7	15.7	²	---		---		---
1987	2,631	2,279	352		45,488	40,008	5,479		17.3	17.6	15.6		---		---		---
1988	2,668	2,323	345	²	45,430	40,189	5,242	²	17.0	17.3	15.2	²	---		---		---
1989	2,713	2,357	356		46,141	40,543	5,599		17.0	17.2	15.7		---		---		---
1990	2,759	2,398	361	²	46,864	41,217	5,648	²	17.0	17.2	15.6	²	---		---		---
1991	2,797	2,432	365		47,728	42,047	5,681		17.1	17.3	15.6		---		---		---
1992	2,823	2,459	364	²	48,694	42,823	5,870	²	17.2	17.4	16.1	²	---		---		---
1993	2,868	2,504	364		49,532	43,465	6,067		17.3	17.4	16.7		---		---		---
1994	2,922	2,552	370	²	50,106	44,111	5,994	²	17.1	17.3	16.2	²	---		---		---
1995	2,974	2,598	376		50,759	44,840	5,918		17.1	17.3	15.7		---		---		---
1996	3,051	2,667	384	²	51,544	45,611	5,933	²	16.9	17.1	15.5	²	---		---		---
1997	3,138	2,746	391		52,071	46,127	5,944		16.6	16.8	15.2		---		---		---
1998	3,230	2,830	400	²	52,526	46,539	5,988	²	16.3	16.4	15.0	²	---		---		---
1999	3,319	2,911	408		52,875	46,857	6,018		15.9	16.1	14.7		305		222		83
2000	3,366	2,941	424	²	53,373	47,204	6,169	²	15.9	16.0	14.5	²	---		---		---
2001	3,440	3,000	441		53,992	47,672	6,320		15.7	15.9	14.3		---		---		---
2002	3,476	3,034	442	²	54,403	48,183	6,220	²	15.7	15.9	14.1	²	---		---		---
2003	3,490	3,049	441		54,639	48,540	6,099		15.7	15.9	13.8		311		236		74
2004	3,536	3,091	445	²	54,882	48,795	6,087	²	15.5	15.8	13.7	²	---		---		---
2005	3,593	3,143	450		55,187	49,113	6,073		15.4	15.6	13.5		---		---		---
2006	3,619	3,166	453	²	55,307	49,316	5,991	²	15.3	15.6	13.2	²	---		---		---
2007	3,656	3,200	456		55,201	49,291	5,910		15.1	15.4	13.0		327		246		80
2008	3,670	3,222	448	²	54,973	49,266	5,707	²	15.0	15.3	12.8	²	---		---		---
2009	3,647	3,210	437		54,849	49,361	5,488		15.0	15.4	12.5		---		---		---
2010	3,529	3,099	429	²	54,867	49,484	5,382	²	15.5	16.0	12.5	²	---		---		---
2011	3,524	3,103	421		54,790	49,522	5,268		15.5	16.0	12.5		241		173		68
2012	3,540	3,109	431	²	55,104	49,771	5,333	²	15.6	16.0	12.4	²	---		---		---
2013	3,555	3,114	441		55,440	50,045	5,396		15.6	16.1	12.2		---		---		---
2014	3,594	3,132	461	²	55,888	50,313	5,575	²	15.6	16.1	12.1	²	---		---		---
2015	3,633	3,151	482		56,189	50,438	5,751		15.5	16.0	11.9		299		192		107
2016	3,653	3,169	483	²	56,369	50,615	5,754	²	15.4	16.0	11.9	²	---		---		---
2017	3,652	3,170	482		56,406	50,686	5,720		15.4	16.0	11.9		329		241		89
2018	3,652	3,170	482	²	56,304	50,694	5,610	²	15.4	16.0	11.6	²	331	³	237	³	94	³
2019	3,679	3,198	481		56,282	50,796	5,486		15.3	15.9	11.4		358	³	267	³	91	³
2020³	3,647	3,171	476		55,369	49,375	5,994		15.2	15.6	12.6		299		211		87
2021³	3,664	3,186	478		55,967	50,072	5,895		15.3	15.7	12.3		345		253		92
2022³	3,631	3,158	473		55,720	49,935	5,786		15.3	15.8	12.2		296		210		86
2023³	3,624	3,152	472		55,416	49,734	5,683		15.3	15.8	12.0		320		232		89
2024³	3,617	3,146	471		54,994	49,485	5,510		15.2	15.7	11.7		319		231		88
2025³	3,609	3,139	470		54,519	49,120	5,399		15.1	15.6	11.5		318		230		88
2026³	3,576	3,111	465		53,555	48,368	5,186		15.0	15.5	11.1		292		208		84
2027³	3,547	3,086	461		52,878	47,821	5,057		14.9	15.5	11.0		292		209		83
2028³	3,533	3,074	459		52,575	47,589	4,986		14.9	15.5	10.9		306		221		85
2029³	3,513	3,057	456		52,255	47,357	4,898		14.9	15.5	10.7		301		217		84
2030³	3,498	3,044	454		52,059	47,253	4,807		14.9	15.5	10.6		304		221		84

---Not available.

¹ A teacher is considered to be a new hire for a public or private school if the teacher had not taught in that control of school in the previous year. A teacher who moves from a public to private or a private to public school is considered a new teacher hire, but a teacher who moves from one public school to another public school or one private school to another private school is not considered a new teacher hire.

² Estimated.

³ Projected.

NOTE: Data in this table represent the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Data for teachers are expressed in full-time equivalents (FTE). Counts of private school enrollment include prekindergarten through grade 12 in schools offering kindergarten or higher grades. Counts of private school teachers exclude teachers who teach only prekindergarten students. Counts of public school teachers and enrollment include prekindergarten through grade 12. The pupil/teacher ratio includes teachers for students with disabilities and other special teachers, while these teachers are generally excluded from class size calculations. Ratios for public schools reflect totals reported by states and differ from totals reported for schools or school districts. Projections in this table were calculated after the onset of the coronavirus pandemic and take into account the expected impacts of the pandemic. Some data have been revised from previously published figures. Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Statistics of Public Elementary and Secondary Day Schools, 1955-56 through 1980-81; Statistics of Nonpublic Elementary and Secondary Schools, 1955 through 1980; 1983-84, 1985-86, and 1987-88 Private School Survey; Common Core of Data (CCD), "State Nonfiscal Survey of Public Elementary/Secondary Education," 1981-82 through 2019-20; Private School Universe Survey (PSS), 1989-90 through 2019-20; Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS), "Public School Teacher Data File" and "Private School Teacher Data File," 1999-2000 through 2011-12; National Teacher and Principal Survey (NTPS), "Public School Teacher Data File," 2015-16 and 2017-18, "Private School Teacher Data File," 2017-18; Elementary and Secondary Teacher Projection Model, through 2030; and New Teacher Hires Projection Model, through 2030. (This table was prepared September 2021.)

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