ELKHART COUNTY, Ind. - The Elkhart Community Schools Board of School Trustees voted Tuesday to double the pay for substitute teachers who are retired Indiana teachers.

The previous rate of pay for retired teachers in the school corporation was $145 for a full day and $75 for a half day.

Starting Wednesday, the new rate of pay is $300 for a full day and $150 for a half day.

The school board is offering an added incentive to teachers who retired from Elkhart Community Schools specifically. These teachers will receive $350 for a full day and $175 for a half day of substitute teaching.

“Across the nation, school districts are facing teacher shortages and looking for qualified substitute teachers to provide a high level of education for students,” said Maggie Lozano, director of human resources, Elkhart Community Schools. “Retired teachers bring years of classroom and teaching experience to ECS, which is invaluable to our students. With a limited pool of retired teachers available to substitute in our classrooms, we want to ensure we are placing these retired educators whenever possible. Improving the rate of pay helps the district attract retired teachers who are still called to make a difference in the lives of students.”

The substitute rate of pay for non-teachers hasn't changed.

Those interested in substitute positions can visit the Elkhart Community Schools website, click "Employment", then click "Substitute".

In a previous version of this article, we stated the new rate of pay is $350 for a full day and $175 for a half day. That is the rate of pay for teachers who specifically retired from Elkhart Community Schools. We apologize for this error.