With students around Idaho returning to school, thousands of workers in the education sector are also returning to work. This includes not only teachers, but also non-teaching staff, including bus drivers, guidance counselors and administrators. In recent years student enrollment has increased in Idaho public primary schools, driving higher demand for these occupations.
Since 2020, Idaho’s rapid population growth has brought more than 23,000 additional children ages five to 17 into the school environment. This influx has increased demand on Idaho’s kindergarten through 12th grade (K-12) education system. Total employment in elementary and secondary schools increased by 6.7% during this period to accommodate the growing student population. This new demand has affected employment trends for different occupations in a variety of ways.
School administrators, guidance counselors and bus drivers are three occupations in the K-12 sector which all had employment shifts in different ways due to the increase of students. School administration and guidance counselor occupations experienced elevated employment after 2020, while school bus driver employment decreased after the COVID-19 pandemic.
Figure 1. Idaho school enrollment and selected primary school support occupations, 2015-2025
*Dotted line indicates absent data
Source: U.S. Census Bureau 1-Year Estimates, Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), Occupational Employment and Wages (OEWS) 2015-2025
Educational administrators for K-12 schools showed elevated employment in Idaho immediately following the COVID-19 pandemic. This tracks precisely with the increase in estimated total Idaho school enrollment. This growth is also associated with an increase in the number of educational institutions. More than 40 new elementary and secondary schools were established in the state during 2020, each requiring not only teachers but administrative staff. The new institutions also correlate with the 87% increase in occupational growth for administrators from 2015 to 2025. Education administrators are among the higher earning occupations in the sector with a median annual wage of over $100,000 in 2025. This occupation can be demanding, often requiring an understanding of finance, curriculum and government compliance.
School guidance and career counselors have another vital role in the education sector. The post 2020 influx of new students in the state put pressure on K-12 institutions to meet increasing counseling needs. Beyond helping students set and achieve educational and career goals, guidance counselors are often an important resource for students navigating emotional and social challenges. Statewide employment in the occupation increased initially after the pandemic and then remained flat at approximately 2,000 guidance counselors. This plateau roughly corresponds to recent softening enrollment statewide.
While guidance counselors and administrator employment roughly follow state enrollment trends, the same can’t be said for bus driver employment. The school bus driving occupation in Idaho underwent distinct changes from 2015 to 2025. Total employment for bus drivers was higher before the pandemic with 2,800 bus drivers in 2018. Student transportation is especially necessary in a state like Idaho with many rural communities with students living miles away from school.
This changed during the pandemic, when employment decreased due to most classes being held remotely. In 2020, turnover for bus drivers in Idaho increased to over 20% due to loss of demand and high rates of retirement. As students returned to the classroom, total employment was 800 drivers less than pre-pandemic despite the higher student population. Average monthly job postings for school bus drivers increased from seven in 2018 to 21 in 2025, indicating that districts were increasingly competing for a limited pool of qualified drivers.
This unmet demand drove an increase in median wages from $13.79 an hour in 2018 to $22.24 in 2025. The shortage of bus drivers in Idaho has recently shown signs of recovery with 2025 employment increasing to near 2018 levels.
Figure 2. Idaho education support employment activity, 2015-2025
Source: U.S. BLS, OEWS
Idaho’s rapid school-aged population growth following the pandemic reshaped demand for education support occupations. While administrators and guidance counselors saw employment increases during this period, bus drivers faced a sharp decrease. As Idaho continues to grow, adequate staffing in these essential roles will remain critical to delivering accessible, safe and compliant education services statewide.
Brandon.Duong@labor.idaho.gov, regional economist
Idaho Department of Labor
208-236-6715
Sources
Lightcast, The Conference Board. “Help Wanted Online, 2015-2025.” Accessed August 2026. https://lightcast.io/
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. “Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, 2015-2025.” Accessed July 2026. https://www.bls.gov/oes/
U.S. Census Bureau. “American Community Survey, 2015-2025.” Accessed July 2026. https://data.census.gov/
U.S. Census Bureau. “Quarterly Workforce Indicators, 2015-2025.” Accessed July 2026. https://lehd.ces.census.gov/
This Idaho Department of Labor project is funded by the U.S. Department of Labor for SFY27 as part of a Workforce Information grant (55%) and state/nonfederal funds (45%) totaling $649,127.
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