Teaching subs deserve better pay

To the editor:

The intent of this letter is not to fault the Cape Girardeau School District, janitors, kitchen workers or school nurses. The district, like many others, has to manage its money closely because of budget constraints. The intent is to bring attention to one of the many problems facing educators today: pay.

On Sunday, there was a job listing for substitute teachers, substitute custodians, substitute kitchen staff and substitute nurses. The lowest paying job of all was for substitute teachers. Not having done any of the other three jobs, I can't say which of the four are the most important. I do believe that at least the four should be equal in pay.

You must have 60 hours of college credit to be a substitute teacher. The only other job listed that required post-secondary training was the nursing position. Substitute teachers have to deal with students they have never met. In a junior high school or a high school, they will come in contact with as many as 120 to 130 students a day. This is a highly responsible job. Let that child not be taken care of correctly, and the school will hear about it immediately.

Finding substitute teachers is a hard job. Administrators will tell you that it is one of the hardest parts of their job. It would probably be easier with better substitute pay. The quality and availability of substitutes would probably be better as well.

SID ATKINS, Chaffee, Mo.