With shortages still an issue, Highland decides to bump up pay for substitute teachers

Substitute teachers will be making a little more in Highland District 5 schools this year, as the district copes with teacher and staff shortages afflicting most schools.

The Highland school board approved a $10 increase in the daily pay rate for substitute teachers at each tier, as substitute teachers are not part of the regular teachers’ contract. Highland adopted a tiered system of pay for substitute teachers some time ago, providing a higher rate of pay to substitutes with more education and experience.

The new rate of pay will be $110 per day for a substitute teacher without a teaching license and $120 for one with a license. Teachers who retired from Highland District 5 will be paid $130 per day, and any substitute who works for 10 or more days in a row will be paid $150 a day.

“We have certainly seen challenges getting subs, some of which have been due to COVID,” Highland Superintendent Mike Sutton said. “We have greater challenges finding subs for our non-certified staff, (such as) custodians, secretaries and program assistants.”

In fact, at the same meeting, the board was informed the nurse from the Alhambra/Grantfork schools was transferred to the middle school as that position could not be filled, though the search is continuing. In addition, a retired teacher was brought in as a long-term substitute to replace a grade six science teacher who resigned late.

Earlier this year, the state passed legislation allowing retired and substitute teachers more latitude in how many days they can work. But as of early August, there were dozens of open positions in metro-east schools. At one district in Belleville, the inability to find a music teacher left the district at risk of having to cancel its elementary music program entirely, but they filled the position just two weeks before school began. While a teaching position might receive 150 applications in 2008, educators have said they get perhaps 15-20 now.

Statewide, 88% of school districts are experiencing problems with teacher shortages, a problem reflected nationwide, according to the Washington Post. In Texas, some districts are switching to four-day weeks, Florida is putting veterans without teaching backgrounds in the classrooms, and Arizona is enlisting college students to instruct children.

Sutton said District 5 has filled all its teaching positions so far with the exception the nurse position and an additional social worker. The district also has multiple custodial positions that have not been filled.

“The shortage of employees in all areas have been challenging,” he said.