Boards of education throughout the country are cognizant of the shortage of well qualified elementary school teachers. There has been considerable competition among school boards for the limited supply of teachers, so much so that teachers have been tempted to move from place to place, standards of teaching proficiency have been lowered, and little relief of the general shortage has been achieved. When a school system has succeeded in filling all teacher vacancies, too frequently complacency reigns until the beginning of another school year. When the quantitative shortage of teachers is compounded by a recognition of the persistent qualitative shortage, the situation becomes critical, and its solution is a challenge to the best professional and lay minds in the country. Boards of education and public school administrators have a major responsibility, one that they dare not ignore. Their chief business is to employ competent teachers and to create a favorable situation in which these capable teachers can work.