Since 2015, several high-profile surveys have painted a grim portrait of teacher stress and job satisfaction. Although some educators have attributed those trends to educational accountability and reform, little evidence exists connecting education policies to teacher working conditions or -more distally -to the mental and physical health of educators. In this commentary article, we accentuate the deep connections between education policy, working conditions, teacher stress and satisfaction, and school climate and student experiences. We present promising results from a recent study published in the field of occupational health demonstrating that state-level education policies and reforms are associated with inadequate sleep among teachers. Ultimately, we advocate for three things: (a) expanded research on the interdependencies that exist between policies, working conditions, and teacher health; (b) policies that better engage educators in their design and implementation; and (c) new narratives around teaching -ones that highlight the joys of being in the classroom rather than the challenges."We ask teachers to be a combination of Albert Einstein, Mother Theresa, Martin Luther King Jr., and . . . Tony Soprano. We ask them to be Mom and Dad and impart tough love but also be a shoulder to lean on. And when they don't do these things, we blame them for not being saviors of the world. What is the effect? The effect has been teachers are incredibly stressed out."

The Early Information Technology ecosystem (Early IT) developed at a large R1 university in the Midwest has created a direct linkage between K-12, higher education, and industry, eliminating barriers throughout the pipeline for students. The program was created within a unique policy window, with the shortage of IT talent in the workforce converging with both the call for computer science education at the K-12 level and for dual credit options to reduce the cost of higher education. The limited capacity of K-12 schools to meet these demands on their own resulted in a window of opportunity for disruptive policy innovation. This opportunity resulted in a program that is broadening participation in computing and meeting the call for a scalable and sustainable talent pipeline, but that also serves as evidence for the potential of transformational change across various education policy domains. We use early successes in the program to highlight potential futures in the areas of dual credit, college access and affordability, and teacher professionalism.