Substitute teachers in Oregon don’t need a college degree - for now, officials say

Substitute teachers are no longer required to have a college degree to work in Oregon public schools, a temporary move aimed at relieving extreme staffing shortages, officials said.

The decision made by the state’s teacher licensing board allows districts to hire people who qualify under the new temporary requirement alongside substitutes who were already licensed, The Oregonian reported.

Previously, substitute teachers in Oregon were required to at least have a bachelor’s degree and to complete certain training programs and exams in order to qualify for a substitute teaching license.

The number of licensed substitute teachers in Oregon fell from 8,300 in December 2019 to 4,700 by this fall, The Oregonian reported.

Substitute teachers will still have to “obtain the sponsorship of an Oregon school district; education service district or charter school,” be at least 18 years old, and have the “good moral character, and mental and physical health necessary for employment as an educator,” according to the guidelines provided by the Teacher Standards and Practices Commission.

Licenses given under the amended requirements will be valid for the remainder of the school year or six months from the date they were issued, whichever comes later.

Dr. Anthony Rosilez, executive director of the commission, told KLCC that the ultimate goal of the new rule is to make sure students stay in schools, adding that districts will give new substitute teachers extra support and guidance.

So far, “several dozen” people have applied for licenses under the new rule, and both urban and rural districts are seeking to hire new substitutes for all grade levels, Rosilez told KLCC.

“When our principals and superintendents have come to us asking for this type of flexibility, I can tell you that they’ve already made some very delicate calculations in terms of, where do they see the potential challenges as well as the potential benefits of having this type of a substitute license,” Rosilez told KEZI 9 News.

Elizabeth Thiel, president of the Portland Association of Teachers, told CNN that the teacher staffing crisis has been exacerbated by a number of factors — among them, that substitute teachers sought other jobs during the pandemic last year, and that full-time teachers may have to call out sick more often than before due to COVID-19.

“Many teachers resigned or left the profession last year, so there were a lot of openings and many of our substitute educators have been hired into full-time jobs and so the pool that we have left of substitute educators is significantly smaller than it typically is,” Thiel told CNN.

Sabrina Gordon, president of the Eugene Education Association, told KEZI that the new measure is a stopgap measure for a long-standing issue in Oregon schools.

“Students deserve to have professional educators in the classroom every day, and while we are appreciative of anybody that’s willing to step in and help, we can’t rely on that long term,” Gordon said. “We need to have professional — like the best educators possible — in front of our students every single day.”