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Substitute teachers in Mountain View Whisman schools got a pay bump this month as part of an effort by administrators to keep compensation rates competitive with neighboring districts.
The school board voted unanimously at a Thursday, Oct. 2, meeting to raise the regular full-day rate from $250 to $275 and the long-term rate from $290 to $350. Long-term rates apply to substitute teachers who take on an assignment for three or more weeks. The board also approved a $500 stipend for substitutes who complete 30 different assignments in one school year.
The board signed off on staff’s recommendation to raise substitute pay without discussion as part of its consent agenda, which contains routine items intended to be approved in a single vote.
According to Superintendent Jeff Baier, the district needs to attract long-term substitutes so that students can have consistency in the classroom when a teacher is gone for an extended period of time.
“The disjointedness of having a series of substitutes in there really compromises the learning for the children,” Baier told the Voice after Thursday’s meeting. “Being able to offer a bit more for the long-term, we really think it’s going to make us more competitive.”
When reviewing Mountain View Whisman’s compensation compared to other nearby districts, staff determined that the long-term rates were its least competitive, Baier said.
Palo Alto Unified School District pays its substitutes a daily rate of $200, with a long-term rate of $300 for substitutes scheduled 15 or more days in a row. Los Altos School District offers $225 for days one through 10 of teaching, $250 for days 11 through 29, and $375 for 30 or more consecutive days.
Offering competitive pay is important because Mountain View Whisman is so geographically close to other districts and substitutes can get into a pattern of favoring one district over another because of pay, Baier said.
“I think substitute teachers are sometimes undervalued,” he said. “They really do provide the continuity of learning in the classroom when our teachers can’t be there.”
The substitute pay increases are expected to cost the district roughly $175,000 more this school year, district spokesperson Grace Heemstra said.
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