A lack of substitute teachers due to January’s COVID-19 peak put a strain on the teachers and administrators at Boswell.

In January the school saw a pandemic high of 257 total student cases and 35 staff cases, according to the district’s COVID-19 website.

“COVID came back with vengeance after the Christmas break,” Assistant Principal Micheal Vargas said. “I think if another strain comes out we could peak again.”

Due to the high number of cases, teachers and administrators had to fill in when substitute teachers were not available.

Normally, teachers are required to be given both a lunch and a conference period. When Boswell was short of subs, some teachers felt an obligation to fill in, like math department lead Holly Allen.

Allen said the frequent loss of her planning or lunch periods was stressful.

“I just think that it gets overwhelming when you get called day after day,” Allen said. “You’re willing to go and cover, and you feel obligated to do it, but then that puts you back on your work.”

Yearbook teacher Janet Harrison said every staff member was affected.

“All of the teachers got it one by one. We fell like dominos. It was horrible,” Harrison said, “but the people here are different, and they’re willing to step up. You don’t get that in other places that I’ve worked.”

The number of COVID cases has since decreased dramatically. As of press time, Boswell has no active cases, but the shortage of substitute teachers remains.

Vargas said better jobs could be contributing to the lower rate of available subs.

“I think there’s other opportunities for people that used to sub. Our job market in the world is better than it’s ever been,” Vargas said. “People are just exploring other opportunities, and that’s just the reality.”

Usually substitutes are college students training to become teachers, but both have been on the decline. Harrison said that could be due to the lack of money and respect teachers receive.

“Nobody wants to go into teaching. It’s a horrid, horrid profession for new people,” she said. “There are so many things put on your shoulder.”

For current teachers, the consolation is $25 for each time they take on another’s class.

Harrison said that Boswell has done a great job at checking up on the teachers during this COVID wave.

“I think they do a phenomenal job of trying to take care of teachers, trying to make sure teachers are healthy and well,” Harrison said.

Allen said other schools have not handled COVID as well as Boswell, though.

“There are other schools that I heard that shut down or they were putting 10 classes into an auditorium with one teacher,” Allen said. “Well how is that safe?”