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Absenteeism task force urges pilot of ‘wellness days’ for teachers after data show rising teacher absences
Summary
A task force convened by Roanoke City Public Schools reported rising teacher absences (more than 21,000 in 2024–25) and recommended piloting wellness days and other supports; HR estimated a teacher wellness‑day pilot would cost in the low hundreds of thousands and recommended phased rollout and evaluation.
Roanoke City Public Schools officials on May 26 presented findings from a teacher absenteeism task force that identified rising teacher absences, operational strain and student instructional continuity risks, and recommended several immediate and structural responses including a pilot of paid wellness days for teachers.
Chief Human Resources Officer Dominic McKee told the board the task force — formed at the superintendent’s request in November 2025 and including 41 members — reviewed substitute coverage data (ESS), operational observations and an employee survey. "This is going to be a multi year, multi phase process," McKee said, emphasizing the goal of identifying root causes and support strategies.
Task force presenters said the employee survey produced a roughly 39 percent response rate and that teachers accounted for 64 percent of respondents; Deeds reported total recorded absences rose from 19,799 in 2023–24 to 21,054 in 2024–25. Presenters singled out common reasons for absences — personal illness, medical appointments and family caregiving — and recommended both low‑cost operational fixes (aligned absence approval protocols, better forecasting and supervisor training) and structural changes including leave redesign and incentives.
As a near‑term structural option, the task force proposed piloting "wellness days" for teachers, citing survey interest and potential gains in morale and retention. John Michael Deeds estimated the maximum theoretical cost of a teacher pilot using current substitute pay (around $150/day) could be in the low hundreds of thousands; he framed the pilot as data collection to test return on investment in reduced absenteeism and improved workforce stability.
Board members asked whether a teacher‑only pilot would affect classified staff morale, whether chronic cases would be excluded from pilot calculations, and how the district would evaluate success. HR said the plan is to pilot with teachers first, then consider instructional assistants and others later, and to disaggregate data by school and role to identify concentrations and tailor responses. Staff emphasized the proposal is for board consideration as an informational item and that further design work would come back to the board for approval.
