Pennridge School District has been dealing with teacher and assistant shortages for several years, and during that time also struggled to find enough support staff, writes Jess Rohan for the Bucks County Courier Times.
The school has contacted an external company, Judge Healthcare, since at least 2023 to help find candidates for its assistant positions.
Meanwhile, ESS, a contractor that provides substitutes for the district, reported that while it was able to meet 95 percent of substitute teacher requests this school year, it was only able to fill 63 percent of requests for substitute paraprofessionals, leaving around 635 of the requests for a substitute unfilled.
West Rockhill Elementary had the highest rate of unfilled substitute teacher requests in the district as of April.
The school also ranked highest among elementary schools based on a raw number of unfilled requests, at 21. Despite this, the contractor managed to fill 95 percent of substitute teacher requests for the school.
When ESS is unable to fill a position, the school has to cover it by borrowing a building sub from another school or by putting a substitute teacher in a paraprofessional position.
Learn how Pennridge School District is navigating ongoing staffing shortages and what internal data reveals in the Bucks County Courier Times.
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