Fewer South Dakota teachers leaving profession than the norm

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — South Dakota is bucking a national trend of teachers quitting in search of better working conditions and higher pay, despite the state’s poor reputation for compensating educators.

National Education Association surveys have shown that about half of the teachers in the U.S. quit within five years after earning their degrees. In South Dakota, only about one-fourth of teachers leave in their first five years in the profession, according to the Argus Leader newspaper.