When a teacher is out at Branson, the school does not call a substitute agency. Jeff Symonds, assistant head of academics, notes that it has been the case for as long as he can remember.
“We’ve never had substitute teachers in the 35 years I’ve been here, and it’s deliberate,” Symonds said.
Instead, Branson relies on its own staff. When a teacher is absent, colleagues step in to cover, keeping lessons going and familiar faces in the room. Symonds said this works because students are far less likely to act out with someone they already know.
“A substitute teacher in another school rarely does content,” he said. “They just basically do felony prevention.”
For longer absences, like a teacher out for surgery or maternity leave, covering in-house is still the first priority.
“Our first thought is, how do we cover that with the current team of teachers teaching that class?” Symonds said. “If we can’t, then we’ll engage with an outside teacher.” Even then, they prefer former teachers or alumni who are already familiar with the community.
The rare exception came when a teacher was called for jury duty, and none of the school’s outside contacts were available. “Is [Drew Mathieson] asynchronously better than an unknown person synchronously, whom we can’t vet?” Symonds recalled thinking. Rather than bringing an unknown person, the team chose asynchronous instruction, and students were back on track within days of the teacher’s return.
On the logistical side, Symonds pointed out that outside substitutes bring their own complications.
“You get assigned a substitute who lives in Alameda, and then they get stuck on the bridge, and they don’t know the traffic patterns, and they show up late,” he said, adding that parking and agency costs make the whole system more trouble than it’s worth for a school of Branson’s size.
Teachers, he said, generally enjoy covering for one another. “People don’t mind doing it. I think it’s fun.”
For now, the in-house model is not going anywhere. “As long as we can continue to manage it in-house with our own people,” Symonds said, “I think everybody’s happier.”
