Southeast readies for substitute teachers program

They work in obscurity, seldom getting the attention of parents. They're lucky if students know their names. But school districts rely on them to keep classrooms going when the regular teachers are sick or away at education conferences.

They're substitute teachers. Too few of them exist in the region, Southeast Missouri State University officials say.

The university hopes to address the problem with a new substitute teacher program that would provide what amounts to two years of teacher training.

Students would take 60 credit hours of courses, receiving certificates in elementary and special education, or middle and secondary education.

The university plans to start the program this summer.

The goal is to provide quality substitute teachers and teacher assistants, said Dr. Randy Shaw, dean of the School of Polytechnic Studies and assistant provost of extended learning at Southeast.

Missouri's Coordinating Board for Higher Education approved the two certificate programs at its meeting in February. School officials announced the new programs this week.

Shaw said a survey of local superintendents showed a need for qualified substitute teachers.

The problem is most severe in small, rural school districts. They often have a limited pool of applicants, Shaw said.

The region also needs teaching assistants, individuals who can provide instructional and clerical support for classroom teachers, he said. Teacher assistants particularly are needed to work with special-education students.

Students in the teacher assistant/substitute teacher certificate programs can apply the 60 hours of college credit toward a four-year degree at Southeast should they want to continue their education, Shaw said.

The new certificate programs will use existing courses already offered at Southeast, he said.

Officials at area school districts said they always need qualified substitute teachers.

"There is really a shortage of good substitute teachers," said Jackson High School principal Rick McClard. "Where we run into a real problem is long-term substitutes," he said.

Such substitutes are needed when teachers are out of the classroom on maternity leave or because of an extended illness.

But Cape Girardeau, Jackson and Oak Ridge school officials say they usually can find substitutes.

They say that's because their schools are close to Southeast Missouri State. As a result, they can hire Southeast students who have earned two years of college credit.

The Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education requires substitute teachers to have at least 60 hours of college credit. But none of those classes have to be teaching courses.

Applicants must pass criminal background checks and be approved by DESE, local school officials said.

Some substitutes are retired teachers.

Substitutes can specify the grades or even academic subjects they are willing to teach.

The Cape Girardeau public schools almost daily have five or six substitutes teaching in classrooms.

Eighteen substitutes taught in the schools on Tuesday, said Gerald Richards, director of human resources for the district.

The district has a list of 155 state-approved substitute teachers in the area from which it fills temporary teaching positions, Richards said.

Substitute teachers in the region typically make from $55 to $70 a day, depending on the school district and whether the individual has a college degree, Richards said.

Oak Ridge School District superintendent Dr. Gerald Landewee said some substitute teachers regularly substitute in a number of schools.

School districts find it harder to get substitutes when they all are competing for temporary replacements for teachers attending the same educators' conference, Landewee said.

mbliss@semissourian.com

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