Nebraska School Districts Face Substitute Teacher Shortage

NORFOLK — School districts are searching for the sweet spot. They want the right number of substitute teachers. Not too many so they don’t get enough work and not too few where they where they’re scrambling to occupy a classroom. Norfolk Public Schools, and Nebraska in general, have been missing the sweet spot. “The numbers have declined a little bit,” NPS Director of Human Resources and School Accreditation Mike Hart said. "But also, the expectations about what we want to put in front of our kids has also continued to increase because we’re not satisfied putting just anybody in front of our kids." Director of Human Resources and School Accreditation Mike Hart says the substitute shortage has grown in the last five years and forced the school district to get creative. They looked at raising sub pay and tried to improve the substitute experience. In their last school board meeting, the district approved a plan to hire a full-time substitute teacher. Hart hopes a full-time sub would help the District know what they could expect from that teacher every day. “This particular individual would be someone that would - we would guarantee that everyday we have a place for you,” Hart said. "But everyday we just don’t know where that’s going to be and sometimes it will be at the last minute.” The shortage is statewide, with the Nebraska Department of Education addressing the problem by doubling the number of days a local substitute teacher could work. But the issue doesn’t hit Norfolk’s surrounding communities as hard. Pierce Public Schools Superintendent Kendall Steffensen says they don’t have a problem because there are several retired teachers who live in the district. “We don’t want an interruption to our teaching and our learning,” Steffensen said. "Pierce is fortunate to have retired teachers who have spent 30-plus years in the classroom. So we’re very confident that our teaching and learning continues." Steffensen did say he considered the full-time sub approach while working at a school in Kansas.