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Substitute teachers to get own e-mail addresses in school district system

2 min read

All substitute teachers in Lee County will now be issued their own e-mail address in the district system starting this spring.
Until recently, substitutes didn’t have access to the district-based electronic mailing system which may have left them at a disadvantage.
Many of the important school announcements on upcoming fire drills, emergency situations or activity cancellations are communicated through e-mail. Without access it’s possible that the substitute wouldn’t get the message.
“There would be no notification unless the front office sent a kid with a note,” said Marvin Goetz, president of the Lee County Association of Professional Substitute Teachers.
The district employs approximately 900 substitutes, said Goetz, and now each one can be contacted individually and they’re able to use computers stationed in each classroom.
“They never had e-mail so the result was they weren’t available to use the computers that are in every school throughout the district,” he said. “Now, they will have an e-mail number and the district can contact them individually, and the substitute can contact other people.”
Trainings will also being given to each substitute starting Monday night and every two or three weeks after that, he said. The very first class will be primarily made up of the substitute association’s elected officers and board members as a trial run to work out the details.
Now that substitutes have access to e-mail, the district will begin utilizing more computer-based training. Each substitute will learn how to use Smart Boards, or interactive white-boards, and as the year continues they can be trained in other parts of the school district.
The substitute teachers association will also hold one of its meetings at 9:30 a.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 16, at the Lee Education Center on 2855 Colonial Blvd.
For additional information on the association, visit www.lcapst.org.