By DICK MASON • The Observer

LA GRANDE — Union County is feeling the impact of a regional and nationwide substitute teacher shortage, but its school districts are not letting it get the best of them, thanks to educators who are willing to go the extra mile.

For proof, look at the Cove School District administrators — including Superintendent Earl Pettit — who teach when substitutes cannot be found.

Pettit has a lot on his plate yet he embraces the challenge of going back into the classroom as an educator when necessary.

“Any time I spend time in the classroom it is a good time,” he said. ”Every time I go in the classroom I feel like I should be doing it more.”

Pettit noted it gives him a better look at how students are learning via new technologies in the classroom, a chance to know students better and much more.

On some occasions, the shortage of substitutes in the Cove School District rises to the point that classes have to temporarily merge with others, Pettit said.

The La Grande School District is not as impacted as Cove by the substitute teacher shortage. Scott Carpenter, the La Grande School District’s assistant superintendent, said his district has a solid number of substitute teachers available, but it has a much, much harder time hiring classified staff including cooks, secretaries, maintenance workers and teacher aids.

Carpenter suggested that people interested in ultimately becoming teachers should consider first joining the school district as a member of its classified staff. He noted that by doing so people will be able to make connections in the school district that could help them if they later pursue teaching careers.

The assistant superintendent also said that while the school district is in a relatively stable situation in terms of substitute teachers, it is always looking for more. He encourages anyone interested in substitute teaching to contact the La Grande School District.

Extra caution advised

Union School District Superintendent Carter Wells said the lack of substitute teachers in his district is the same as it was when the COVID-19 pandemic started.

“We had a shortage of substitutes then and we still do,” Wells said.

One reason there is still a great need is that during the pandemic students and staff with great urgency were encouraged to stay home if they had any symptoms.

Teachers thus now feel a responsibility to be role models for their students and not come to school if they might be ill. While this creates a greater need for substitutes, Wells applauds teachers who stay home when they aren’t feeling well.

“That is good,” he said. “We don’t want teachers coming to school sick.”

High expectations

Wells does not envy the challenges substitutes face, noting that in many cases being a substitute teacher is one of the most difficult jobs imaginable.

“They are walking into an unfamiliar situation in which they are expected to know everything about the subject they are to teach,” he said.

In some cases they are expected to have learned what they are to teach as quickly as one can snap their fingers, Wells said.

Union’s superintendent said the job is also tough because substitute teachers do not know the strategies used by teachers they are filling in for to help specific students.

“They do not know the nuances of classrooms,” Wells said.

Recruiting retired teachers

Elgin School School District Superintendent Dianne Greif said her district is in a sturdy place in terms of substitute teachers.

“We have a solid base of substitutes,” she said, adding, “but we can never have enough.”

Greif said her school district is fortunate to have a number of retired teachers who like to come in and help out as subs when they are needed. Still, she said that the Elgin School District’s substitute teacher situation is not as good as it was 10 years ago.

A big reason is that there was not a shortage of teachers 10 years ago like there is today.

Greif said a decade ago many teachers just beginning their careers worked for a couple of years as substitutes to gain experience. Today this is not the case because many new teachers are landing jobs right out of college instead of working first as subs.

Retired teachers working regularly as substitute teachers in Union County include Doug Hilslop, who taught for decades and also served as superintendent of the Imbler School District for a total of 11 years.

Hislop does his work at Imbler Elementary School and Imbler High School, where he is its head wrestling coach. Hislop fills in as an educator at Imbler because he is committed to helping the school district continue moving forward.

“I want to keep the schools going,” he said.

The retired educator on Thursday, Feb. 16, substituted as a physical education teacher in Imbler. Hislop appeared to relish teaching the students about the art of throwing balls as much as they liked playing the ball-throwing games he set up for them.

“I wouldn’t do it if I didn’t enjoy it,” Hislop said.