If one of the teachers were randomly abducted by aliens, there would have to be a substitute to take their place until the alien sends them back, or if there needs to be an official replacement. Some of these substitutes, patron subs, are hired by the school to sub specifically in the Green. We have five of these types of substitutes in our high school, they work two to three times a week.
“Being a patron sub gives me the stability of knowing where I go every day,” Mr. Paul Taylor, someone who has been subbing since 2015 said. “I don’t mind bouncing around from building to building like I used to, but it is nice to show up and know for sure I have a job, and I know where I will be most days.”
Since patron substitutes are hired by the school, it’s a job they can rely on. But, being a substitute isn’t always an easy job from bad behavior to having to teach multiple different subjects. If there are not good students to work with, it can be difficult to get the lesson plan done. When anyone works with a bunch of kids, there can be many factors that are game-changers.
“Obviously, behavior comes into play. And if there are behavior problems, then it’s hard to sub. So that’s one,” Robert Hoffman, who had been subbing for three years said. “The second one is if I don’t have a plan. Most all the teachers here at Green, they always leave excellent lesson plans so they’re easy to follow, but if I would happen to run into a time when there’s no real plan, that’s a problem.”
Due to the fact they are around the same students, they may have an idea of what the classes and the district is like. There are other things that make classes easier to substitute. Some of the factors are the environment and the people impacting the job.
“One of many things I like about teaching in Green is that the students and staff are very friendly.” Taylor said.
Since the students and staff are familiar with these patron substitutes, teachers consider different factors that make these substitutes good. They have to make sure that the patrons are able to get things done and keep the class engaged.
“I think they do a pretty good job. Sometimes they have to go from classroom to classroom without much notice so it’s kinda dependent on what the teachers supply them to do,” Mr. Shawn Edwards said. “The key thing is: are the students getting their work done? That should be the main priority if they’re getting that, accomplishing that, then they are definitely doing a good job.”
Here, there are teachers in the building that have been both substitutes and teachers. They have experience from both the teacher and substitute perspective. Ms. Anne Knight is one of these teachers who was a substitute for some time, then began to become a full-time teacher. She has a view of the pros and cons of substituting.
“Subbing often does not entail a lot of hands-on teaching or rigorous grading, but you may be faced with a room and students you are not familiar with,” Anne Knight said. “On the other hand, being a full-time teacher with your own roster of students may require more preparation, organization, and overall work, but you have the advantage of getting to know your students over time and building a community in the classroom, which in many ways makes the job easier and much more enjoyable.”
Overall, there are a lot of substitutes that help the school run smoothly. Their days look different everyday, depending on the class, kids behavior, and schedule. Sometimes their days are harder than others, but they make the best of it.
Column about what makes a good sub?
“They’re patient and their flexibility because you know it’s different classrooms. There’s different students in every classroom so you have to be flexible and understand how to handle kids, and keep them in control.” Jeffery Liu ‘25
“A sub that lets us do our work and doesn’t yap in class the entire time and they aren’t strict or mean.” Madie Maldonado ‘27
When they know about the subject. Like for Spanish, when we have a sub that doesn’t know spanish, it’s like okay, that’s not as good as when we do have a sub that actually knows spanish. So when the sub knows about the subject.” Gabe Polacheck ‘26
“When the sub is friendly and interacts with the kids a lot and when they explain directions clearly.” Hailely Eaton ‘28
