Missouri lowers GPA requirement for new teachers to improve recruitment

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. - The Missouri State Board of Education is lifting what they call a "barrier" to incoming teachers.

Incoming educators must have at least a 3.0 GPA in their subject area to become certified. That threshold is being lowered to 2.5 in hopes of increasing the number of certified teachers in the classroom.

The goal is to improve teacher recruitment and retention without reducing quality.

Outside of GPA, teachers are still required to pass a performance assessment to be certified.