School district raises substitute pay

Beginning this week, substitute teachers in the Kalispell school district will get a pay raise - the first raise in eight years.

The board of trustees approved the raises at a special meeting Tuesday night.

Under the new salary schedule, short-term substitute teachers who do not have at least a bachelor's degree will receive $60 per day. Those with a bachelor's degree or out-of-state teacher's certification will receive $70 per day.

Substitute teachers certified in Montana - including retired teachers - will receive $75 a day.

Short-term substitutes in the Kalispell district have earned $60 a day since 1999.

"We found out we were among the lowest-paying districts in this area, and we were having trouble finding subs," said Karen Breeding, district human resources director.

There was more money available for substitute salaries in this year's budget than there has been in previous years.

In fiscal year 2007, which ended June 30, the district spent $231,000 on short-term substitutes. This year, Kalispell initially allotted $241,000 for short-term subs. The raise trustees approved will cost an additional $28,600, which is available in the budget, Breeding said.

Pay for long-term substitute teachers has changed as well, a result of last spring's negotiations with the Kalispell Education Association, the union representing teachers.

Previously, substitute teachers were considered short term if they filled in for one teacher for nine or fewer consecutive days. This year, that maximum is 35 consecutive days. On day 36, a substitute teacher is considered long term.

State law requires long-term substitutes be certified in Montana. The Kalispell district will pay them $75 a day for the first 35 days - the newly approved short-term salary for Montana-certified teachers. After that, Breeding said, substitute teachers will receive $157 a day.

Previously, long-term substitutes earned $60 a day for their first nine days and went on the teachers' pay scale for each day after that, she said.

The increase reflects the value the district places on long-term substitute teachers. While there are many names on the short-term list, long-term fill-ins are harder to come by.

"There are not too many of those available to us," Breeding said.

With the increases, Kalispell's substitute-teacher wages are comparable to other local districts.

"We're probably now on average with other schools," Breeding said.

Whitefish and Columbia Falls pay short-term substitutes $70 a day. Substitutes become long-term and are paid according to the teacher pay scale after 35 days in Whitefish. In Columbia Falls, substitutes are short-term if they teach 30 or fewer consecutive days, business manager Dustin Zuffelato said.

Bigfork pays short-term substitutes $62 per day. Substitutes are considered long-term if they fill in for a teacher for more than 15 consecutive days; on day 16, subs earn $93 a day.

That long-term wage then is backdated to the substitute's start date, District Clerk Eda Taylor said.

Reporter Kristi Albertson may be reached at 758-4438 or by e-mail at kalbertson@dailyinterlake.com.