Midpeninsula schools are having trouble filling substitute teaching positions, making it hard for teachers to take time off when needed.

There has been a drastic decline in available substitute teachers in the Menlo Park City School District since the 2014-15 school year, Jammie Behrendt, the district's assistant superintendent, wrote in an email.

There are about 2,900 students in the district, which uses an average of about 15 substitute teachers per day, and sometimes up to 30 when there is a big professional development event, according to Parke Treadway, the district's public information officer. The district has a list of about 48 substitutes it frequently calls. It also works with the sub agency Swing Education every day to help fill the need, she said.

"(Substitutes) play an important role in making sure that education doesn't stop for our students when the classroom teacher is away," Behrendt said. "When we lack guest teachers to cover our classrooms, it can put a strain on the school staff. Menlo Park City School District prides itself as an innovative district where we are able to attract a pool of talented guest teachers. However, even with our faithful guest teachers who return to our district year after year, we still experience the shortage."

Schools need substitute teachers when permanent classroom teachers are sick, take a personal day or are out of school for professional development.

The number of substitutes the district needs varies from day to day based on what is happening in the district, Behrendt wrote. Even gaining 10 new substitutes would help alleviate the strain, she said. The district is recruiting substitute teachers through its website.

One former district sub, Kelly Donohue, said that although her positions with the district were great, and she enjoyed her time with the students and staff, it was always her intention to try to find a permanent position for the following school year. Donohue subbed for the district during the 2012-13 school year.

"Subbing does not provide the same kind of salary, steady paychecks, and benefits that a regular teaching position has," said Donohue, now a high school art teacher in Campbell. "With short-term subbing assignments, you don't have the time/opportunity to build meaningful relationships with your students... You also spend a larger portion of your time on classroom management, which is especially challenging when you don't know students' names and haven't established rapport with them."

Additionally, while staff members are friendly, subs are not at any one school site consistently enough to build relationships with colleagues, she said.

"It can feel very lonely and isolating to be a sub," she said. Donohue is pregnant and eager to find a good substitute to cover her maternity leave.

The shortage of substitute teachers is not unique to the Menlo Park City School District — it's an issue throughout California.

"When the economy is doing well, it is often difficult to find substitutes," Patricia Love, administrator for strategy and communication for the San Mateo County Office of Education, wrote in an email. "When the economy is not doing as well or as more people are between full-time work, we see the number of available substitutes increase. With the state unemployment rate holding at a record low of 4.2 percent for the last few months, this has been a challenge for many counties across the state."

The Woodside Elementary School District, which has about 400 students, began hiring one full-time substitute teacher per year about five or six years ago, said Superintendent Beth Polito. The substitute teacher is a fully benefited staff member. It helps having a sub the district can count on to fill in for other teachers, she said. The district has a list of about 13 subs it uses.

It would be helpful to have two or three more substitutes so teachers can attend more training sessions or workshops, she said.

"The district is not centrally located, but once we get people in, they stay," Polito said. She credits pay that is comparable to other districts in the county, along with the students and staff, for keeping substitutes in the district after they start. The district did an analysis a few years back to be sure it was paying subs enough, she said.

The Las Lomitas Elementary School District, which has about 1,260 students, has had trouble securing substitute teachers in previous years, Monica Salas, administrative assistant to the superintendent, said in an email. The district has a list of 33 subs it frequently calls.

"We have worked hard and continually advertise and recruit so we have a strong substitute pool to tap from," she wrote. "So far this academic year we have been able to positively manage our substitute teacher demands."

The Portola Valley School District's goal is to maintain a list of up to 12 dependable teacher, paraeducator, and/or office staff substitutes at all times, but this is not easy to accomplish, Superintendent Eric Hartwig wrote in an email. There are about 570 students enrolled in the district this school year. The district currently has a list of about 20 subs.

"PVSD (Portola Valley School District) runs a continuous posting and interview process for substitutes throughout the year, and continually monitors the local labor market to assure that our pay rates remain competitive," Hartwig wrote. "The substitute shortage is the same all over San Mateo County — districts compete for those teachers in the area who substitute teach for a living. Good substitutes are in high demand, and will often accept jobs at schools where they may be hoping for regular employment, or are conveniently close to their homes."

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