> most states suspending a teacher's license if they quit mid-year, leaving apathetic teachers trapped in bad schools

Imagine if Apple made you sign a non-compete to the effect of "I agree to never quit between August and June, with the punishment if I do being that I'm no longer allowed to develop software for anyone." That'd basically be indentured servitude and wouldn't last a minute in court. So why do we let public schools get away with it?