By Dana Wormald | Editor
Good morning, New Hampshire, and welcome to Wednesday. Today, Ethan DeWitt reports on a new study outlining the challenges ahead for New Hampshire when it comes to hiring and retaining public school teachers. In the Wednesday commentary, Howard Mansfield tells an American story through the decline of one small bridge in Hancock. And, from William Skipworth, a Portsmouth food pantry is sending “Gus the Bus” on a fresh (and free) food mission. Thank you for reading, and enjoy the day. — Dana
The number of teachers in the state has declined in the past 10 years. (Photo by Dana Wormald/New Hampshire Bulletin)
By Ethan DeWitt
To enter the teaching profession in New Hampshire is to navigate a series of financial trade-offs. The median two-bedroom rent in the state in 2025 was $2,024 per month. The average monthly wage for a teacher? Several hundred dollars less. And becoming a teacher means earning nearly 34% less than other New Hampshire professionals with similar educational backgrounds, according to estimates by the Economic Policy Institute. Those numbers are at the heart of a new report pointing to a continuing challenge. As New Hampshire public schools face declining enrollment, they are also contending with another long-term concern: recruiting and retaining teachers. And recent state projections suggest the gap is set to persist.
The bridge on Windy Row in Hancock over the spillway for Halfmoon Pond, photographed in 2020. (Photo by Abbe Hamilton/Monadnock Ledger-Transcript)
COMMENTARY
By Howard Mansfield
“The U.S. economy is 10 times larger today than when the federal government stepped in to protect the small town of Peterborough, and yet today we say we can’t afford to repair thousands of bridges, dams, roads, schools, wastewater plants, drinking water plants, ports, railroads and public parks. Welcome to the land of the red-listed, white, and blue.”
By William Skipworth
Gather, a Portsmouth-based food pantry, is bringing its fresh-food bus, nicknamed “Gus the Bus,” to Lamprey Health Care’s community health center in Newmarket. The bus will be at the facility’s parking lot — 207 South Main Street in Newmarket — every other Thursday from 11:30 a.m. until 12:30 p.m. starting Oct. 15. The bus will provide free food to Lamprey patients and community members who show proof of New Hampshire or Maine residence or employment, Gather said. No financial information is required.
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