Schools limit applications for substitutes

Not long ago, Kalispell Public Schools scrambled to find a good substitute when a teacher got sick. Now there is a line of eager applicants ready to step in when teachers’ symptoms keep them home.

The line was so long this fall that the school district has had to limit applicants for substitute teaching positions.

Only those with valid Montana teaching certificates may apply.

“Two years ago, we were struggling to find subs. We were hard-pressed to find people to cover our needs,” Human Resources Director Karen Glasser said. “Now we have subs coming out of our ears.”

The restriction only applies to people who want to sub for teachers, Glasser said. The district is still accepting applicants for general duty substitute positions, such as tutors, aides and food service workers.

The district has about 200 people on its sub list, Glasser said, 72 of whom are certified teachers. Eighteen months ago, there were about 135 people on the list, including 45 certified teachers.

Glasser attributed the increase in substitute applicants to the economy.

“Maybe their spouses have lost employment. They used to stay at home with the kids, but their spouses are losing employment, so they’re trying to find employment again,” she said. “So they’re signing up to be subs.”

In Montana, substitute teachers aren’t required to hold teaching licenses. Subs must have at least a high school education and pass a fingerprint-based background check. People without teaching certificates must complete training approved by the school district in which they hope to substitute teach.

For many local would-be substitutes, that means attending a three-hour workshop at the Northwest Montana Educational Cooperative.

The cooperative used to offer substitute teacher training every month, but this fall is offering bimonthly workshops. The next training is scheduled for Dec. 8.

The trainings have slowed in part because of a call for certified substitutes, co-op director Eliza Sorte said. The Flathead County Superintendent’s Office maintains a sub list for the rural school districts, and it has limited applicants to those with certified teaching licenses or four-year college degrees.

“We, too, went to that after Kalispell had done it, simply because for the first time so many people were coming in to apply,” County Superintendent Marcia Sheffels said.

Sorte said she has seen an increase in the number of professionals attending the substitute teacher trainings. Some are retirees hoping to supplement their fixed incomes. Others are people in the real estate industry looking for secondary income.

The Bigfork School District has seen a similar surge in substitute teachers with expertise outside academia, Superintendent Russ Kinzer said.

“We always have some certified people apply, but to see people with other professions apply” is unusual, he said. “There are more professional-level people.”

Bigfork has not limited its substitute teacher applicants to only those with teaching licenses. Neither has Columbia Falls, Whitefish or Evergreen.

Other districts in the country rely on the sub list from the superintendent’s office. There are about 75 people on that list now, which is significantly higher than most years, Sheffels said.

“It’s a reflection of economic times and a lack of employment,” Sheffels said.

The economy was one reason the county decided to limit applicants this year to certified teachers and people with four-year degrees, she added. People have to pay for their own background checks and for tuberculosis shots.

With so many people on the sub list, “we can’t even guarantee they would get a day’s job to recoup that money for them,” Sheffels said.

Not all of the people on the county sub list are certified teachers, however. Many are people who have been substitute teachers for years. Others have been specifically requested by Sorte or by a particular school district.

“If a school requests us to do a background check on someone [who is not a certified teacher], we gladly do that,” Sheffels said. “Some of the schools step out individually with people that they want to sub.”

Kalispell Public Schools’ list likewise includes noncertified teachers, many of whom have been part of the substitute pool for years, Glasser said.

“We have people who are not certified teachers who are teaching in our substitute pool,” she said. “These people still exist. It’s just our new applicants; we’re not taking any unless they have a teaching license.”

The next substitute teacher training offered at the Northwest Montana Educational Cooperative is from 5 to 8 p.m. Dec. 8. Call early to register; training is dependent on enrollment numbers. Call 752-3302 for information.

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