Absence Makes Districts Scramble for Stand-Ins

By Leslie Harris

Raeburn Rathbun, the principal of the 340-student Elementary School 64 in Indianapolis, knows all about the shortage of substitute teachers.

"Many times I taught a class myself," she said recently. "It's extremely frustrating when you don't have a class covered and you have to spread children around the building. It's not an ideal situation for anybody."

While she filled in for ill or absent teachers, the complex task of running the school fell to the secretaries in the office, who took over her duties unless...