Quote of the Month
“It is not enough to have a good mind; the main thing is to use it well.”
— René Descartes
SubManagers Newsletter--A Free E-Newsletter from the Substitute Teaching Division of STEDI for SubManagers-February 2009
Feature Articles:
The Economy and Substitute Teaching Survey Results
SubSolutions 2009 Regional Workshops
GPS - Navigating to your chosen destination
Grip not a Gripe
The Economy and Substitute Teaching Survey Results
The Substitute Teaching Division of STEDI recently conducted a survey of school districts nationwide to see what affect the economy has had on substitute teaching. Districts from 47 states responded with a statistical distribution representing the overall US school district population.
In the survey we asked questions relating to the overall budget of a school districts as well as questions relating to substitute teaching. Several interesting findings emerged.
Accepting Applications
A larger percentage of rural districts are still accepting applications for substitute teachers by the end of January 2009,
as opposed to suburban and urban districts. Nearly twice the percentage of urban and suburban districts have chosen not to
accept applications. This accounts for a large number of individuals
who wish to substitute teach, but their new applications are not being accepted.
| Urban | Suburban | Rural | |
| Accepting Applications | 83% | 81% | 91% |
| Not Accepting Applications | 17% | 19% | 9% |
SubPool Size
Urban (57%) and suburban (71%) districts reported a significant increase in substitute teacher pools as opposed to rural school districts (42%). Many urban and suburban districts are filling every absence, whereas rural districts are not experiencing an increase and are still struggling to find more substitute teachers.
| Urban* | Suburban* | Rural* | |
| Larger SubPools | 57% | 71% | 42% |
| Smaller SubPools | 10% | 5% | 23% |
Budgets
Districts reported that 24% of urban as opposed to 13% of suburban districts and 12% of rural districts actually increased their overall budgets for this year over last year. Also suburban (22%) and rural (20%) districts decreased their overall budgets from last year; twice as many as urban districts (10%).
Substitute teaching budgets tended to follow the same increase/decrease as the overall budgets experienced.
| Urban* | Suburban* | Rural* | |
| Overall Budget Increase | 24% | 13% | 12% |
| Overall Budget Decrease | 10% | 22% | 20% |
| Substitute Teaching Budget Increase | 23% | 13% | 12% |
| Substitute Teaching Budget Decrease | 10% | 21% | 20% |
*NOTE: The difference between 100% and the two percentages listed are the districts that kept their budgets the same.
Comments from participants
Written comments by those participating in the survey stated that permanent teacher absenteeism was down significantly due to a cancellation of professional development opportunities, including conference attendance, as well as many teachers not taking personal days due to fears of the economy. Many districts stated that substitute teachers are frustrated with the lack of work due to the increase in subpool sizes and a reduction in absenteeism.
Very few districts stated that substitute teacher pay would most likely be reduced in the next budget year.
Conclusion
The economic downturn in 2001 experienced a similar increase in substitute teacher pools and applications. However, teacher absenteeism tends to be much lower now than in 2001.
School budgets will likely be trimmed more in the coming fiscal year than have been during this 2008-2009 school year.
Districts may want to look for opportunities to reevaluate its policies on substitute teaching and set higher training standards and requirements during this time of plenty.
Many thanks to those who participated in this survey.
SubSolutions 2009 Regional Workshops
We have exciting news for those who need to stay close to home to attend conferences. We will be conducting regional SubSolutions workshops hosted by local districts at various locations around the country. The content for these regional workshops will mirror the agenda we present at our national SubSolutions conference.
By providing a regional conference district travel restrictions might be more readily addressed. The same great information will continue to be available to you but at a location more conducive to traveling and smaller budgets.
Currently scheduled SubSolutions 2009 Regional Workshops include:
Salt Lake City, UT - June 24 and 25
Sutter County, CA - November 5 and 6
As soon as others regional workshops are finalized, information about location and dates will be posted on our website. Plan now to attend a regional conference of your choice, or give us a call if you would like to host a workshop at your district for your state or region.
For more information visit: http://stedi.org/SS
GPS - Navigating to your chosen destination
What would we do without them? If you do a lot of traveling and get lost easily then they are a necessity. They are now a standard feature on most automobiles. The Global Positioning Satellite even helps when we go camping, fishing, hunting, and hiking. They certainly can be effective in giving us direction.
Even if we stray they will recalculate our course of travel and keep us on the right path. Mine even speaks to me several times during the course of travel. There are several brands to choose from; Garmin, tom-tom, Iway. In fact, the GPA is even available from wireless phone providers. Why do I mention the GPS? Simply stated: they provide valuable directions in where I want to go.
Let's talk about another GPS; not the one mentioned above but one I will refer to as the Getting Professional Substitutes model. As you struggle in these economic difficult times, knowing how to provide necessary services to substitute teachers can make your job more rewarding. Our GPS is comprised of two settings; one for Substitutes and one for SubManagers. Instead of gas station, restaurant, and lodging tools, ours contains SubOrientation, SubReady, and SubTraining directions. Our GPS is telling us we're getting close to SubWeek, SubTraining, reviewing policies, revising practices and spending year-end monies. This would be the perfect time to find out what is available to you and your school district for successful substitute teacher management navigation.
Grip not a Gripe
Looking for the right place to begin? Trying to get a foothold? Why not start by establishing a SubCommittee? With the creation of a SubCommittee designed to meet the needs of substitute teachers, you can create, access, implement, and evaluate solutions that are critical to a successful substitute teacher management program. A SubCommittee within a district normally consists of a superintendent, personnel director, substitute coordinator, principal, substitute teacher, and permanent teacher who bring a broad range of expertise and experiences to the group.
The number one reason substitute teachers leave is the lack of success in the classroom. The second reason for substitute teacher attrition is the way they are treated. When a SubCommittee is created to address these two concerns, students become the beneficiaries of improved education, and society reaps the reward.
For information on getting your SubCommittee off the ground attend one of the regional conferences or call Barbara today.