When a Teacher Walks Out: A Symptom of a Larger Crisis in Education

By Katie Elizabeth Gorman

A Gateway Unified School District grade-school teacher walked out of her classroom in tears on Friday, April 4th. Reports quickly circulated that students were seen running after her and begging her to stay, but she exited school in tears.

It was later confirmed that she notified administration before leaving. While that moment was emotional and concerning, it reflects something much deeper—a system struggling to support both teachers and students.

This wasn’t just a personal crisis. It was a breakdown rooted in individual decisions and a system stretched to its limits. The teacher involved began at Gateway in 2022 as a long-term substitute and later entered the intern credentialing program.

She struggled with classroom management and academic performance, relying heavily on therapy-based practices that often lacked results. Her colleagues described difficulty collaborating with her, as discussions frequently focused on her classroom challenges without leading to meaningful solutions.

While it’s important to hold educators accountable—especially when they leave children behind—it’s also critical to examine how she was placed in a high-responsibility role without adequate preparation or support.

Over the past several years, California has enacted a series of laws that have dramatically reshaped the teacher credentialing process. AB 130, passed in 2021, allowed new teachers to fulfill basic skills and subject matter requirements using college coursework instead of standardized tests like the CBEST or CSET.

SB 820 passed during the Covid-19 pandemic, temporarily suspended traditional student teaching requirements, fast-tracking emergency credentials.

These changes, combined with the growing reliance on intern credentials, were intended to solve a critical staffing shortage—but they’ve also created classrooms where underprepared teachers are expected to perform without the proper foundation, mentorship, or training.

Many enter classrooms without having ever led one during student teaching, and often without passing the exams that once served as benchmarks of readiness. At the same time, discipline policies have dramatically changed, leaving many teachers feeling powerless to maintain order.

AB 420 and SB 419 restricted teacher’s independent ability to suspend for “willful defiance” in grades K–8, while AB 1802 emphasized restorative justice and required suspension to be used only after multiple alternative interventions.

Education Code § 48900.5 mandates that administrators can only use exclusionary practices, like suspensions, as a last resort. Students have quickly learned that there are minimal consequences for their actions, with teachers left to manage increasingly volatile environments with shrinking support.

In response to Mountain Top Times, Gateway Unified Superintendent, Kyle Turner emphasized the urgency to address the accelerating challenges facing education. While he could not comment on staffing matters for legal and ethical reasons, he spoke candidly about the strain schools are facing. Superintendent Turner wrote, “That said, I think you’re tapping into a very real and vital conversation about the immense pressure on schools in today’s climate. Also, the impact of the teacher shortage and the more prominent systemic challenges educators are navigating daily. I care deeply about those issues, and I believe they deserve thoughtful attention and context.”

Superintendent Turner noted the growing reliance on intern credentials, emergency staffing, and the reality that many well-intentioned educators are stepping into classrooms without the tools, training, or time to thrive. His insight affirmed what many in education already know: the system is pushing people into classrooms before they’re ready, and then leaving them to sink or swim.

To make matters worse, wellness initiatives and SEL programs, while well-intentioned, have often become burdensome rather than beneficial. These approaches are frequently promoted as solutions to behavior and classroom culture, yet they rarely address the root problems. Teachers are expected to facilitate emotional check-ins, journaling, and restorative circles while academic standards and classroom challenges escalate. When implemented poorly or used in place of real structure and consequences, these programs can actually make things worse, distracting from instruction and eroding the teacher’s role as a leader in the room.

The combination of underprepared educators, inadequate discipline policies, and misplaced wellness initiatives has created a perfect storm. Veteran teachers are leaving the profession in record numbers. New teachers are burning out within their first few years. Principals are caught in the middle, stretched thin trying to support staff while juggling rising behavior issues, heightened parent expectations, and ongoing staffing instability.

We need to rethink how we support early-career teachers—starting with more robust induction and mentorship programs. We need to re-examine credentialing policies to ensure they reflect the real demands of the modern classroom. And we need to restore respect, structure, and reward for the professionals who show up every day for our kids. Schools are more than just buildings—they’re ecosystems of people. And when one part of that system breaks down, it affects everyone. The solution won’t come from pointing fingers. It will come from honest conversations, community engagement, and policy rooted in both compassion and accountability.

When a teacher walks out, it should never be ignored or excused. But it should also never be dismissed as just a personal failure. It’s a warning light for a system in crisis—and if we care about our students, we can’t afford to look away.