Very quietly, Bay Area schools have fallen into crisis. The region is experiencing a major shortage of substitute teachers that has left schools scrambling.
One big reason is the improving economy.
The Alum Rock School District, which consists of elementary and middle school in and around San Jose, is dealing with this crisis on a daily basis. On Friday, there simply weren’t enough subs.
“Our assistant principal and I have been in the classrooms substituting when there hasn’t been enough substitutes available,” Adelante Dual Language Academy Principal Sandra Garcia said. “It’s a big concern.”
Friday at Adelante, there were only three subs available for the four absent teachers, so the school scattered students into separate classrooms to deal with the shortage.
Some of the students ended up in substitute teacher Oscar Bauer’s class. “I get more calls than I can actually cover,” Bauer said.
Schools from Redwood City to Cupertino to San Jose report a drastic substitute teacher shortage. The reasons? More teachers retiring and the high cost of living in the Bay Area. But mainly, experts say, it’s the economy.
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“As the economy has improved, you have individuals going into different fields, so we don’t have as many individuals going into the teaching field,” ARUSD administrator Rene Sanchez said.
The short-term solution? Schools all over the Bay Area are pulling teachers out of their prep periods to fill in, district and school administrators are being sent back to the classrooms, or – as is the case at Adelante – classes are doubling up.
“It’s very concerning,” Sanchez said. “We are working with local universities to make sure they are funneling some of their individuals that are recent graduates to our district.”
But, in the meantime, schools all across the Bay Area are scrambling every morning to put a state-certified employee in every classroom.
