District leaders told the board they are experiencing persistent shortages in substitute teachers and cafeteria staff and proposed issuing RFPs to explore third-party substitute employee services and contingency options for cafeteria coverage.

Administration said the RFP for substitute services would be an exploratory step to determine whether an outside service could expand the substitute pool and provide administrative support for clearances and training; such services typically add a per-day fee on top of the district’s substitute rate. Board members raised concerns about cost, local availability, competition with neighboring districts, and whether outsourced workers would be paid more than current employees.

On cafeteria staffing, administrators described repeated vacancies and daily call-offs that have strained the cafeteria operation. The board discussed several options: targeted recruitment, restructuring jobs to combine summer and school-year assignments, exploring outside food-service vendors that deliver prepared meals, and using work-based student positions where legal and appropriate. Board members noted collective-bargaining and pension rules that affect whether retired staff can be used as substitutes and asked staff to return with RFP responses, cost comparisons, and contract language that protects current employees.

Staff also requested permission to advertise for substitute employee services and supplemental cafeteria staffing so proposals can be brought back to the board for approval; no contract decisions were made at this meeting.