The last time that the Miamisburg City School District increased substitute teacher rates was in December 1999, when it was increased from $72 to $85 per day, Treasurer/CFO Tina Hageman told this news outlet.
School board member Chris Amsler said the move was “a huge 21-year step in the right direction.”
“I am truly, 100% excited for our subs,” Amsler said. “This gets us not only on the parking lot, but gets us on the playing field for next year. I think that’s going to be huge when every school district comes back to full capacity.”
Board President Ann Niess agreed, saying approving the raise helps the district stay competitive and shows the district’s appreciation for its substitute teachers.
Superintendent Laura Blessing said the district has 115 substitute teachers available for this school year compared to 158 during the 2019-20 school year and 151 in the 2018-19 school year.
Miamisburg has 5,049 students and 414 certificated employees, she said. Asked how many substitute teachers the district wants to employ, Blessing said: “As many as we can.”
Of the 16 Montgomery County public school districts serviced by the Montgomery County Educational Service Center, which includes Miamisburg, substitutes are paid anywhere from $75 to $125, ESC spokesman Guy Fogle told this news outlet.
Miamisburg is the latest in a string of districts in the area to raise pay for substitute teachers. West Carrollton schools in January 2020 increased daily pay for them from $90 to $115, the district’s first pay hike for those jobs in six years, school officials said then.
The shortage of qualified substitute teachers that has affected school districts nationwide dates back decades, according to the National Education Association. A little more than 20 years ago, DEA outlined a number of strategies used by Ohio school districts to combat the problem, including giving substitutes bonus money.
Anyone interested in becoming a substitute teacher in Miamisburg school district may contact Heather Wright at hwright@miamisburg.k12.oh.us.
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