Butler Area School District Superintendent Dr. Brian White has provided some additional information about the “tremendous staffing challenges” that forced the district to modify plans to return to in-person instruction.
“We knew we had a few positive cases among staff and we knew had quarantines,” White said. “But a trend that has changed in general is the number of employees under the Family First Coronavirus Response Act, they’re eligible to take leave if their child’s school is in remote learning.”
Since neighboring districts such as South Butler, Mars, and Seneca Valley all engaged in remote learning at this time, Butler received numerous requests from employees living in those districts who would have been eligible to have time off.
“We don’t have a big bank of substitutes we already have,” White said. “It got to a point that we were not going to be able to staff all of our buildings.”
The Family First Coronavirus Response Act expires on December 31st assuming it is not renewed which would change the situation and present new options for the district and parents who are employees.
