Tipp City board reviews K—5 substitute-teacher pilot to ease staffing gaps

The Tipp City Exempted Village Schools board discussed a pilot program that would expand substitute-teacher eligibility for elementary grades, allowing candidates without bachelor's degrees to serve in K—5 classrooms after required background checks and short training.

"This is just for the K—5," Speaker 8 said, addressing the board and clarifying an entry in the packet, "Bachelor's degree not required." The proposal described screening steps including FBI and BCI background checks, onboarding paperwork and two days of district training; administrators and building principals would participate in training and candidate interviews.

Board members said the district faces a persistent shortage of substitutes. Trustee Speaker 2 urged the board to collect more data on where positions are unfilled and why, noting the middle school has had the highest numbers of open shifts: "In February there were 18 positions" left unfilled, Speaker 2 said, and that pattern has created recurring gaps in coverage.

Several trustees recommended a focused rollout. Speaker 8 and others said the pilot would initially target K—5 and that expansion to middle or high school would be considered after evaluation. Trustees also suggested surveying current workers to understand why certain roles go unfilled and whether pay or responsibilities are deterring applicants.

Board staff said they would assemble logistics for the pilot'including the training checklist, application materials and a process for posting and interviewing candidates'and bring additional data to the next meeting so the board can refine eligibility and scale. No formal vote on the pilot was held during the work session.

The board directed staff to gather the requested data and return with refined recommendations before making a final decision on implementation.