The message from Roanoke school Superintendent Marvin Thompson to teachers has been clear and unwavering: all students must achieve and all schools must be state accredited -- no excuses.

But teachers say that mentality is only tightening the crush they already feel between intensifying accountability from state and federal government and rising numbers of poor and minority students who stand on the distant side of academic achievement gaps.

Morale is flagging, teacher turnover is high, and the city appears to be losing its most experienced educators, especially in the struggling schools where they are needed most.

For years, teachers say, administrators have blamed them for slow progress toward accreditation without allowing them to acknowledge that the task of teaching children short on everything from loose-leaf paper to hope demands more than some teachers know how to, or are prepared to give.

"You're not allowed to talk about that," said Abbe Toler, an instrumental music teacher at Westside Elementary, an unaccredited school where three-fourths of kids receive free or reduced-price lunches.

Teachers say they pride themselves on high expectations for every student and believe all children can learn. But "not every child is going to come equipped and ready to learn," said Anita Price, guidance counselor at Round Hill Primary School.

In the past 15 years, poor and minority students, who historically have struggled academically, both nationally and in Roanoke, have grown into the majority of students.

"It's undeniable that teachers are feeling the pressure," said director for professional development Ed Holstrom, who joined the school system in January from the state Department of Education. "It's all about the classroom teacher and how effective we are at supporting that classroom teacher."

Holstrom said there's plenty of talent among the city's nearly 1,100 teachers, but not all administrators agree with him. A recent survey bears out that teachers' sense of what their bosses think of them is true.

More than two-thirds of central office administrators characterized teachers' attitudes toward their jobs as "fair" or "poor," in a survey by MGT of America, to which 89 percent of administrators responded. While a third of administrators called teachers' work in meeting students' needs "good," the largest group, 42 percent, rated their work as "fair."

Fifty-five percent of administrators gave teachers an overall grade of B, but a full third gave them a C.

Teachers gave themselves higher marks, as did their principals.

"We're like the children," said Becky Pullins, a teacher at Westside. "We need to hear that they understand that we're doing the best we can."

'Constant cycle'

Scores of teachers aren't waiting around for some stroking and praise from central office.

More than 150 teachers have resigned in the past two years according to the recent MGT of America report commissioned by the school system.

The school division is turning over 100 teachers annually, or nearly 9 percent of the total teaching staff, compared with less than 7 percent in Salem and between 4 percent and 6 percent in Roanoke County.

That turnover appears to be creating a less experienced and less qualified work force, especially in high-poverty schools where challenges demand the best and most qualified teachers.

Over the past three years, the percentage of teachers in the city with provisional credentials has increased from 7.9 percent to 8.9 percent, according to the school system's report card from the Virginia Department of Education. Provisional credentials mean the teacher lacks some element for full state certification, such as a term of student teaching or a passing score on the Praxis professional knowledge tests. Provisional hires have three years to complete their credentials. They are the youngest and least experienced teachers in the system.

At the same time, the percentage of teachers with master's degrees in city schools dropped from 35 percent to 33 percent, indicating it's the system's most experienced teachers who are leaving.

Ruby Payne, a national expert on teaching children in poverty, said high turnover in poor schools is a national phenomenon. The high-stress environment in such schools causes burnout.

"Poor children get this constant, constant cycle of brand-new teachers," Payne said. "They're the training ground, if you will, for teachers."

From the 2002-03 school year to last year, nine Roanoke schools saw an increase in the percentage of teachers with provisional credentials -- all of them high-poverty schools.

At Stonewall Jackson Middle School, where three out of four students are poor enough to qualify for free and reduced-price lunch programs, the number of teachers with provisional certificates nearly doubled over the past three years to 19.4 percent.

Woodrow Wilson Middle School, where more than half of students are poor, has the highest percentage of teachers with provisional credentials. At 20.4 percent, it's nearly four times what it was three years ago.

Statewide, the percentage of teachers with provisional credentials has dropped.

Citywide, 7.7 percent of courses are taught by teachers not considered "highly qualified" by the standards of the No Child Left Behind Act. To be highly qualified, teachers must hold a bachelor's degree, a state teaching certificate and demonstrate knowledge in subject areas they teach.

To comply with the federal No Child Left Behind Act, all teachers must be highly qualified by next school year.

On top of complying with federal law, the school system's human resources department has the self-imposed challenge of hiring a faculty that reflects the diversity of the city and the student body.

Twelve percent of teachers in Roanoke are black, according to the school system.

Both Price and Pullins said they were surprised the percentage was that high. Both are black.

The city's population is 27 percent black, and 48 percent of students are black.

Schools human resources director Gloria Simon said the school system is committed to hiring a more diverse faculty. Her department is reviewing its recruitment strategies and attending job fairs focused on minority educators, she said.

A highly qualified, diverse and experienced teaching staff is critical, said city school board Chairwoman Kathy Stockburger, especially in low-performing schools.

"We don't want to stack the deck against the teachers in those schools," she said. "If we're going to expect that kind of performance ... we need to support those teachers in every way we can."

'This time will pass'

"Teachers have carried a burden for a long time for things over which they have no control," Superintendent Marvin Thompson said.

He acknowledges the pressure teachers are under, and the no-excuses mentality he and his associates have propagated. If the pressure is more intense this year than in the past, it's because the school system must get schools accredited now or find them denied accreditation and facing sanctions, they say.

"Waiting another year, a child loses," Thompson said.

Thompson and Bullock believe the answer to the achievement gaps -- and teacher morale -- is a data-driven approach to getting kids to pass the SOL tests.

They have implemented their eight-step process, borrowed from a school system in Brazosport, Texas, to help teachers and administrators raise test scores in troubled schools. Schools such as Oakland Intermediate and Stonewall Jackson Middle School report early success with the process.

The idea is to assess each child's understanding of lessons frequently so improvements can be made throughout the school year.

For example, after a second-grade teacher completes lessons on adding two-digit numbers, students are given a short "snapshot" test to see how much of the lesson they absorbed.

Students who meet a certain benchmark move on to "enrichment" lessons, in which they build on what they already learned. Students who don't meet the benchmark get the lesson over again, but presented in a new way.

The system allows teachers to focus on individual students, but does not consider whether they are poor or minority, Bullock said.

It will raise expectations for all students and undermine any bias against them by showing teachers all kids can achieve regardless of race or background, Bullock said. "It tends to change their behavior toward students."

Success will cure low teacher morale faster and better than anything, he said.

"The teachers are critical," Bullock said. "That's where it all happens."

School board member Courtney Penn knows the pressure is on teachers.

"At the same time, I'm also hearing folks saying, 'If we've got to do things differently, if I've got to do more, I'm willing to do it,' " he said. "Teachers are a dedicated lot."

The pressure on teachers will not last forever, Thompson said.

"This time will pass," he said. "This is not the state of who we are and who we are going to be."