Board raises substitute pay and adds incentive stipends to improve fill rates

Edmond Public Schools' board on July 10 approved a substitute pay increase and an incentive stipend structure intended to improve classroom coverage and substitute fill rates.

District administrators proposed increasing daily substitute pay by $5: to $85 per day for noncertified substitutes and $95 per day for certified substitutes. The board also approved continuation of a tiered end-of-term stipend program the board had approved in January: a supplemental stipend paid if a substitute reaches thresholds of 60%, 75% and 90% of days worked over a pay period. District staff explained the stipend calculations: for example, a substitute who works roughly 40 of the first-semester days (about 60% of 83 days) would receive an additional $200 at the designated payout time; the 75% and 90% thresholds yield proportionally larger per-day stipend amounts ($10 and $15 per day respectively at the threshold levels).

Administrators told trustees the changes could raise maximum daily substitute earnings to approximately $110 per day including stipend payments. The board and staff discussed differences in fill challenges between elementary, Title I, middle and high schools and whether to add higher pay specifically for secondary schools; staff said they had considered it but chose not to differentiate pay now and could revisit later. Board members asked staff to investigate how many substitutes tend to specialize at elementary versus secondary.

The motion to approve the substitute-pay increase and incentives passed unanimously on roll call.