This May in North Carolina, New Hanover County’s first early childhood substitute teacher from a new centralized substitute pool worked a shift at The Learning Tree, a licensed childcare center in Wilmington. Marquita Williams has since filled in several times in different classrooms at the center, providing coverage for teachers who called out sick or needed time off from the taxing work of early care and education. The childcare field, with low teacher pay and high stress, has struggled with burnout and teacher shortages, especially since the pandemic. The lack of a reliable, centralized pipeline of substitute teachers makes it harder to keep classrooms open and take care of teachers, said JC Elrod, director of The Learning Tree. “It’s just as needed here as it is in schools,” Elrod said. “If we don’t have teachers, we can’t provide care.”
A two-year $600,000 grant from Live Oak Bank is funding the county’s first local substitute pool through Wonderschool, a national venture-backed company focused on providing technology and business support services to early care and education providers. “The idea that a childcare provider shouldn’t have an easy way to take a day off, or to take a sick day, or whatever it may be, is crazy,” said Jason Moss, director of new government initiatives at Wonderschool. “There needs to be a solution for that.” Williams is one of 10 onboarded substitute teachers in the pool so far, said Jenna Talbot, a spokesperson for the company. Thirty-seven more teachers are going through orientation. Thirty licensed programs in the county are signed up to participate. Wonderschool has created a statewide substitute pool in Mississippi, but the New Hanover project is its first local version. They hope to spread the model across the state, Moss said. “Our goal is to demonstrate that this is a great local solution so that others can form their own conclusions and say, ‘This now needs to be like a great statewide solution,’” Moss said.
The company provides a digital platform where licensed programs list jobs and where qualified area teachers apply. Wonderschool onboards the teachers, including an interview and orientation process. Candidates answer a screener on their experience and skills and then complete a phone interview, Talbot said. If chosen, candidates then go through an orientation that includes basic information on job expectations, classroom management, child health and safety, and platform usage. Wonderschool employees ensure that the individuals meet state requirements and have appropriate documentation. A provider can then easily access those documents through the platform…