Amid the ongoing teacher shortage across the country, school districts are looking at programs that will bridge the vacancy gap.Franklin County Schools are helping teachers in their district earn a higher rank through a program that was just implemented this school year.On Friday, Franklin County Schools celebrated its first-ever group of 30 teachers to the Rankup KY! Program.Superintendent Mark Kopp says the program helps teachers earn a rank II or rank I through on-the-job courses."The district is paying $5,000 and the employee pays a $1,000," says Kopp. "So it's a very significant cost savings and it provides a special development experience through Bloom-Board. So a teacher can knock it out in as little as a year, or has up to 4 years to complete the program," Kopp says.Robbie Roberts is a math teacher at Western Hills High School and was one of the 30 teachers chosen to participate."The concept of maybe going to school online at night, you know it's just a lot," says Roberts. "Teachers have a lot on their plate already and being able to embed it within your actual day to day instruction, just made it kind of like a no brainier."Teachers receive a pay increase after completing the program and earning their rank change."I don't know that there is a teacher in the world that has become a teacher because of the amazing salaries that we have. This provides a really solid benefit to enable our teachers to make more money, provide a better situation for their families, and it's a great opportunity for us to invest in our staff," says Kopp.