Even teachers need to be absent from school sometimes when they are sick or are attending professional development training to learn new ways to help students achieve their best. And when they can’t be in the classroom, we are grateful to our substitute teachers who we can always rely on to take a last-minute call and keep students moving forward in their learning journey.
One substitute who is making a difference for children at Clackamas Education Service District is Christine Kidwell. After retiring from teaching full-time, Christine still wanted to contribute to the community, so she began to substitute teach. This school year, she substitutes at Heron Creek Therapeutic Program two days a week.
“Miss Kidwell has worked for Heron Creek and our other therapeutic programs for 9 years,” says Stacey Sibley, assistant director of therapeutic programs at Heron Creek. “She is always willing to wholeheartedly jump in and fill in gaps and help us out. She is part of our Heron Creek community.”
Heron Creek serves K-12 students from districts throughout the county experiencing significant social, emotional, behavioral and academic challenges.
“These are students who really need to be taken care of,” says Christine. “On one hand, you need to hold them to consistent standards, and on the other hand, you need to have a lot of heart for them.”
Last school year, she answered the call of service and filled a full-time, long-term substitute position at Heron Creek. During that time, she built strong relationships with the small circle of students in her classroom.
Christine recalls one student “mostly just put his head on the desk and ignored everything. But it turns out he wasn’t ignoring anything at all. As time went on, he did a little more work, got a little more engaged.
“On the last day of school, when I walked him out to his bus, he said, ‘You know, I really didn’t want to come to this school. You made it okay.’”
Thanks to the flexible schedule substitute teaching provides, Christine gets to spend time on her hobbies: crafting, gardening, reading, taking her dog Posey for long walks and traveling. This year she visited the British Isles.
“I got to see where my grandmother was born in County Mayo in Ireland,” she shares.
Christine brings 30 years of experience teaching English, drama and psychology to the classroom, but you don’t need a teaching license or education degree to work as a substitute. Individuals with a regular or restricted TSPC license can substitute teach, and if you hold a high school diploma or GED, you can work as a substitute educational assistant.
We are looking for more substitutes for Heron Creek and our Head Start to Success preschool programs, early childhood special education classes, and Life Enrichment Education Program at locations across Clackamas County.
No matter your experience or the age of students you want to work with, we have opportunities for you! If you have a bachelor’s degree in any discipline, we can even sponsor your restricted teaching license application. Learn more about subbing as a paraeducator or teacher at Clackamas ESD.
