After the hearing, though, Superintendent William R. Hite Jr., responding to reporters' questions, sounded the most ominous warning yet about the firm awarded a $34 million contract to handle substitute-teaching services. That company, Cherry Hill-based Source4Teachers, has underperformed all year.
"My patience has run out" with Source4Teachers, Hite said.
The company promised that 75 percent of open sub jobs would be filled on the first day of school. It's never come close, acheiving a fill rate in the low teens initially. The rate was 19 percent on Friday, and 22 percent the day before - and those gains were made after the district told Source4Teachers to bump up its pay rate and hire more internal staff to process candidates.
Hite Wednesday reiterated earlier statements, saying he had put Source4Teachers "on notice."
That "patience has run out" line has surely frightened them. I bet that the company is now reconsidering their cunning plan to effectively pay people the minimum wage (including preparation etc.) to take over classrooms at a moment's notice. Wow, Mr. Hite, they're thinking, we thought this would work! And so did you, because you gave us all that money to make it work! But, jeepers, now that we're "on notice" what should we do???