The Highland School Board met January 8. Photo by Sam McIntosh.

Highland School District has chosen to raise its substitute teacher pay to $135 after Washington and Mid-Prairie School Districts did the same earlier this school year.

Superintendent Dr. Mike Jorgensen proposed at the recent board meeting the district raise its pay from $110 a day to $135. Board President Nate Robinson said he felt leery about giving a $25 increase and asked principals Angela Hazelett and Jane O’Leary if they think this increase will attract more substitute teachers to the district, or simply keep the number of substitutes they have. O’Leary said she thinks it will stop it from decreasing, but maybe attract those who graduate in the fall semester.

Hazelett said she thinks the district gets its money’s worth from substitutes, “We work our subs pretty hard when they’re here. Because it is so hard to get subs, today I had a sub in the building that was doing two different teachers’ jobs. I mean, just the way we had to balance the schedule. I mean, there are times I have one hopping from the high school classroom down here all the way down to the middle school and going back and forth two or three times.”

The Highland School Board approved raising the substitute pay to $135 per day beginning in the 2018-2019 school year.