KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — Finding teachers and substitutes has been an issue for the past several years. Some say it’s due to the pandemic and changes to the classroom setting.
Tennessee Sen. Ken Yager (R-Kingston) filed a bill to help school districts across the state address these ongoing staffing challenges.
Teachers, substitute teachers, and bus drivers are especially needed here in East Tennessee.
Senate Bill 2702 would allow retired teachers to work as substitutes for a longer amount of time without losing their benefits.
“What this bill would allow is you to proxy retire at 30 years and draw your retirement benefit while then continuing to work for your full amount of days that you have, because currently you’re only limited to work 120 days a year at a full rate of pay,” said Ryan Sutton, director of communications with Anderson County Schools.
Sutton adds their district has seen a staffing shortage for a while.
“We do have open positions all over the district in grade levels all the way from pre-K to our seniors in high school,” he said.
They’re trying to fill those positions with long-term substitutes but those are hard to come by since most are retired teachers.
“We decided to subcontract our substitute teachers because some of our retired teachers actually worked more than 120 days for us and that cut off their benefits for TCRs,” Sutton said.
Paula Hancock the president of the Knox County Education Association, said this new bill will relieve stress for the school system. The goal is to give students a more consistent learning experience and remove barriers for retired teachers who want to substitute.
“When it’s difficult if teachers need to be out to take a sick day and we can’t find replacements like substitutes, that’s very devastating to our students,” Hancock said. “That impacts the learning of the student. It interrupts student learning.”
A spokesperson with Sevier County Schools told WATE their district is also experiencing staff shortages and they are glad to see the legislature address the issue.
This bill is still in the committee stage and has a ways to go before it can become law.
Additional settings for Safari Browser.
