By Eleanor Love, News and Sports Editor
As the Sacramento City Unified School District assesses its Omicron cases, teacher shortages are posing another major challenge for students and the district alike.
On Wednesday, January 5 a whopping 490 teachers in SCUSD were absent, according to a data request made by the Sacramento City Teachers Association. 345 substitute teachers were able to fill in for missing teachers, but there weren’t enough substitutes. 145 absent teachers had no substitutes covering their classes.
Using this data, nearly 30 percent of teacher absences on Wednesday weren’t filled in by substitutes. The previous day, about 25 percent of teacher absences weren’t covered.
Schools experiencing both teacher absences and substitute shortages are faced with an unfortunate situation. At C.K. McClatchy, classes with no teacher or substitute are sent to the library, gym, or auditorium.
These staffing shortages come as tens of thousands of students return to school as Omicron cases rapidly increase across the county.