Should I Stay or Should I Go (Later)? Teacher Intentions and Turnover in Low-Performing Schools and Districts before and during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Erica Harbatkin (), Tuan D. Nguyen (), Katharine O. Strunk (), Jason Burns () and Alex J. Moran ()
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Erica Harbatkin: Anne Spencer Daves College of Education, Health, and Human Sciences Florida State University
Tuan D. Nguyen: Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis University of Missouri
Katharine O. Strunk: Graduate School of Education University of Pennsylvania
Jason Burns: Education Policy Innovation Collaborative Michigan State University
Alex J. Moran: Anne Spencer Daves College of Education, Health, and Human Sciences Florida State University

Education Finance and Policy, 2025, vol. 20, issue 4, 636-673

Abstract: Teacher turnover is a perennial concern, especially in low-performing, high-poverty schools. Although districts and schools may try to anticipate and mitigate turnover by surveying teachers about their future plans, existing research on whether teacher-reported intent is predictive of actual turnover behavior is mixed. Using unique survey data from teachers in thirty-five low-performing, high-poverty districts in Michigan linked at the teacher level to statewide administrative data, we are able to measure turnover behavior one, two, and three years after reported intent. We find that intent is a significant predictor of turnover and becomes increasingly predictive over time. We also find organizational commitment and school organizational conditions are important factors in teachers’ intent and, to a lesser degree, actual turnover behavior.

Date: 2025
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