Help wanted: Substitute teachers, bus drivers in short supply
Feb. 18, 2023 | By Lisa Scagliotti 
Buses drop off students at Crossett Brook Middle School. File photo by Lisa Scagliotti
The weather forecast was for sunshine last Monday when parents of local middle school students got word that school was canceled for the day.
It wasn’t a snow day or some other winter-related reason for the unexpected day off. But with nine teachers out, Crossett Brook Middle School didn’t have enough staff to open.
Superintendent Mike Leichliter apologized in the email notification to families saying closing a school in such an instance was the district’s “last resort.”
“It was clear this morning that in spite of every option considered, there was no way to safely open school with the number of absences throughout the building and lack of substitutes to cover for teachers who are absent,” he explained.
Principal Tom Drake said there was no single reason for all of the staff absences, just more of a perfect storm of illnesses and other circumstances. Leichliter said that even if he and other central office staff were to pinch-hit as substitutes that day, there still weren’t enough adults to fill the necessary roles.
The situation was only the second time in the pandemic that a single school was closed. Brookside Primary School in December 2021 started its December holiday break a day early when there wasn’t enough cafeteria staff to run the kitchen.
Since the COVID-19 pandemic began in the spring of 2020 the Harwood Unified Union School District like many school districts across Vermont has seen its list of backup teachers dwindle. School officials a couple of years ago said there typically were dozens of people willing and approved to fill in on short notice in district classrooms. Clearly this week there was not even the handful needed if even moving office staff to the middle school was considered.
Drake said the district currently has more than 100 individuals who are approved and on the list to call but he estimates that fewer than 20 are active and willing to fill in when called.
“The vast majority are not picking up sub jobs,” he said.
Pay for substitute teachers is based on time needed for the day. A full day is about seven hours and pays $120 per day, $60 for a half day. Those called for fewer than four hours earn $15 per hour.
Similar staffing headaches are also plaguing the First Student bus company that provides transportation for the district. A driver shortage has led to multiple days recently when one Waterbury Center bus route has been without a bus prompting messages to families explaining alternate stops for students to catch the other buses covering the territory.
While driving a school bus requires a special driver’s license certification and training, school officials say it’s not too late in the school year for individuals in the community to go through the process to get on the substitute teacher list.
The application for substitute classroom staff is at the bottom of the district’s website HUUSD.org along with an explanation of the required background check. Anyone interested in learning more about becoming a substitute school bus driver should contact Danial Sargeant, manager of the First Student bus barn at Danial.Sargeant@firstgroup.com or 802-244-6422.