School officials in New Jersey are racing to make sure they will have enough substitute teachers amid much uncertainty about what will happen when in-person instruction resumes in September.
While finding substitutes for when teachers are out sick or unavailable long has been a challenge in New Jersey, the coronavirus pandemic has resulted in unprecedented uncertainty.
Camden City Schools Superintendent Katrina McCombs, speaking at a county government forum Tuesday, said about a third of the district’s teachers indicated in a recent survey they might not be willing to return to the classroom.
When asked if there will be enough to open the schools, McCombs responded, “I can say honestly, at this point, that we are not 100 percent sure,” according to a video posted to Facebook.
“We want to make sure that we also are working proactively in order to ensure that the certification process for substitutes is one that is streamlined and quick, so that we can get as many subs in our pool as well, because we know that will be a challenge for us — staffing,” McCombs said.
Camden is not alone in seeking to bolster its roster of substitute teachers at a time when many subs, just like full-time teachers, may be leery about returning to the classroom.
Richard Bozza, executive director at New Jersey Association of School Administrators, said school leaders throughout New Jersey “are concerned about the availability of qualified substitutes due to adults concerned about potential threats to their health.”
“This will heighten a problem experienced in many districts where there was difficulty in obtaining a sufficient number of substitutes prior to the pandemic,” Bozza said.
A recent report from the EdWeek Research Center found that, prior to the pandemic, U.S. schools were filling just 54 percent of the approximately 250,000 teacher absences per day — and that 12 percent of teachers say the pandemic may prompt them to leave.
It recommended raising substitute teacher pay and providing professional development opportunities, such as alternative credentialing programs for substitutes seeking to move up to a full-time teaching job.
In the months leading up to the pandemic, the Montville school district had sought to add to its total number of substitutes, from approximately 180 to more than 200. It is a job that pays $100 per day.
The district is preparing to survey its roster of substitutes about returning this fall, Superintendent René Rovtar said.
“I’m sure we do have a number of substitutes that are not going to feel comfortable going back into the building,” Rovtar said.
Kristi Hanson, a substitute teacher in Woodbridge, said that while she has not made a final decision she doubts she would be willing to return to the classroom under a reduced workload of, perhaps, two half-days per week. Prior to the pandemic, she typically subbed five days per week in Woodbridge, earning about $425 before taxes.
“It’s not worth putting my family at risk for hardly any money,” said Hanson, a mother of two young children.
While Hanson works part-time at a retail store, a job that brings her into regular contact with many customers, she said there is a “certain risk” with a school setting.
“Kids aren’t going to understand masks. They’re going to sneeze and take their masks off. Kids are kids. They spread their germs, they don’t wash their hands, even if you tell them to do it a hundred times,” Hanson said.
The state Department of Education’s restart plan for New Jersey, released in June, advised school districts to prepare to use substitutes in a variety of settings, such as a mix of in-person and remote learning.
It recommended assigning substitutes to “a single school building or grade level to avoid too much movement between schools,” according to the 104-page report.
Parsippany Superintendent Barbara Sargent summed up the challenge in her district, referencing “the availability of qualified substitute teachers, as well as the health risks involved with outside staff members entering our school buildings.”
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Rob Jennings may be reached at rjennings@njadvancemedia.com.
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