Shawano raises pay for substitute teachers

The Shawano School District is having difficulty competing with other school districts for substitute teachers, and it’s willing to shell out more money to ensure its classrooms are manned.

The School Board voted 6-1 Monday night to increase substitute teacher pay from $90 daily to $120—triple the increase requested by district officials. Business manager Louise Fischer had recommended increasing the pay $10 per day, to $100.

With the increase, Shawano will pay more than other districts in Shawano County and northern Waupaca County, but will still trail larger area districts such as Wausau ($144) and Green Bay ($146).

Derek Johnson, who voted against the pay increase, said the $30 hike was too much for a temporary solution. He suggested the district should be looking at adding staff members who could serve as floating subs.

“Do we really want to launch ourselves ahead of everybody except for the Green Bay schools?” Johnson said. “Other schools are just going to follow suit, whatever we set.”

Johnson estimated the increase would raise district expenses for substitute teachers $100,000 per year. The district already spends about $300,000 annually for subs.

Board member Michael Sleeper noted that asking someone with a four-year degree—a requirement for substitute teachers—to work for $11.25 an hour was unacceptable. He felt $15 per hour would be more attractive to subs.

“It’s not out of line,” Sleeper said. “I have talked with people who said (the current pay) is not worth the aggravation at that price.”

Fischer said the district has a pool of about 50 people it uses to fill in for absent teachers, but despite the large pool, the district has difficulty filling all its open classes.

The district will need to hire five to 13 subs daily next week, according to Fischer, but that’s only to cover the expected absences. Family emergencies, illnesses and other circumstances could require additional subs.

During standardized testing weeks, the district has had to hire 30 to 35 subs daily, she said.

“It’s numerous how many subs we need to have, and it’s not by our choice,” Fischer said.

When the district cannot find enough subs to handle classrooms, it asks teachers to give up their prep periods or asks guidance counselors to fill in, Superintendent Gary Cumberland said.

Fischer expects the district will need to revisit the pay issue next year, as several area school districts are also looking at increases.