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Today’s Lesson: Ansonia Schools and Kelly Educational Staffing®

Using a private staffing company to recruit and hire substitute teachers was not an option administrators in Ansonia Schools, a district comprised of six schools in Connecticut, had considered — until they met Kelly’s district manager in the Waterbury region. A former teacher herself, the manager readily understood the special requirements for recruiting and hiring substitute teachers. And, because she understood these needs, she was able to convince a hesitant school district that Kelly Educational Staffing could meet those requirements. That’s how Ansonia became the first school district in the state to use a commercial staffing service to hire substitute teachers.

The partnership with Kelly has produced some immediate and very tangible benefits for Ansonia schools:

  • The quality of substitute teachers has improved; all of them have at least a bachelor’s degree, and Kelly requires both fingerprinting and criminal history checking.
  • More than 700 substitute teaching assignments were scheduled during the first six months of school.
  • The fill rate for the school district increased from 62% to 100%.

WHAT ANSONIA NEEDED…

Prior to partnering with Kelly, the district’s placement rate was 62% and slipping. A key issue in the district’s ability to recruit was the state law that requires all teachers to have at least a bachelor’s degree. Ansonia invoked a waiver of that law with the hope that by lowering their hiring standards they could increase the number of substitute teachers. Yet even with reduced hiring standards, the substitute teacher pool was still small. And in a small school district, scarcity quickly becomes a large issue.

Adding to this was the fact that Ansonia was required to pay overtime rates to the paraprofessionals it hired to provide substitute teaching coverage. The yearly cost for this strained an already tight budget.

Cumulatively, none of these activities produced an adequate solution to the district’s substitute teacher shortage.

HOW KELLY MET THOSE NEEDS…

Kelly became the vendor of choice not only because of a comprehensive staffing package of recruiting, orientation and training, and scheduling but also because our processes ensured a seamless transition in the school day when a substitute teacher was needed. Key components of our program include:

  • A focused recruiting campaign with a dual purpose: to substantially increase the size and also to improve the quality of the substitute teacher pool
  • A comprehensive orientation/training program, including collateral materials that prepare substitute teachers and help them navigate through their teaching assignments in a professional manner
  • A full-time staffing coordinator who serves as a centralized resource for substitute teacher recruiting and scheduling. The district simply calls the coordinator to request a substitute teacher, and one is scheduled.

Lesson learned: Working with Kelly has given Ansonia schools a reliable and efficient process for recruiting, hiring, and scheduling substitute teachers.

"The old idea of a substitute coming in and there being chaos and students not learning is pretty much diminished by the organized approach that Kelly Services is providing."
Dr. Bob Lindgren,
Interim Superintendent
Ansonia School District