Have you noticed the crazy amount of students in the auditorium during your class or lunch period lately? You’re not the only one. The amount of teachers out is just too much for South to handle with the lack of substitutes, known officially as “guest teachers” by MCCSC.
Junior Abigail Pickens has felt affected by the recent lack of substitute teachers.
“Subs are less reliable. They just expect us to lay out our stuff but there is nowhere to do this [in the auditorium].”
Senior Josh Demmary was also frustrated with having to use the auditorium as a classroom.
“They sent me on a wild goose chase, with a sign on the classroom door, to the auditorium and to the cafeteria.
This doesn’t just seem to just be a problem here at South. Amber McCoy, a fourth grade teacher in West Virginia talks in a New York Times article about her experience needing a sub teacher her class. Her students at Kellogg Elementary School were “taught by rotating cast of seven staff members, including the assistant principal, who switched off every 45 minutes.”
“We are basically relying on every other warm body in our school,” said McCoy.
Tanya Sturgis is in charge of organizing who and what guest teacher fills in for the classes.
“The biggest problem I would say is that guest teachers can only work 4 days a week, which is MCCSC’s policy,” says Sturgis. “So we can never get anyone for all 5 days. Pay is also a factor, they don’t get benefits like teachers do.”
With only 25 guest teachers at South, you wouldn’t think it would be a problem, but due to Covid protocol teachers have to be out for longer periods of time. Mrs. Sturgis saying this is short term gives us hope of having better experiences when teachers are out.
