Requesting a Substitute Teacher

If you are unable to teach on a scheduled date, the Team Portal makes it easy to request a substitute. Your request will be shared with other teachers, and anyone available can claim the assignment.

How to Request a Substitute

The quick way:

1. Go to My Schedule in the sidebar.
2. Find the upcoming class you need covered.
3. Click Need a sub? on that class. (The button only shows on your own future classes that don't already have a sub request open.)

With a reason and urgency:

1. Open the class's lesson from My Schedule (click the lesson title).
2. Open Quick Actions and tap Request Substitute (or use Need a substitute? on the page).
3. In Request a Substitute ("Let the team know you need coverage"), optionally enter a Reason (for example, "Vacation" or "Work conflict") and choose the Urgency.
4. Click Send Request.

Once submitted:

• The lesson page shows "Sub request pending - waiting for a volunteer", and Need a sub? disappears from that class.
• Other teachers are notified about the open sub request.
• The request appears on other teachers' My Schedule pages.

Important: You can only request a substitute for your own future teaching assignments. Past dates and assignments belonging to other teachers cannot be modified.

What Happens After You Submit

How Other Teachers See Your Request

Your sub request appears for other teachers:

1. My Schedule page -- A Substitutes needed section lists open requests (class, date, and who needs a sub) with an I'll Help button.
2. Lesson page -- If they open that class's lesson, a Substitute Needed! banner offers I'll Help.

Personal Invitations

A general sub request is visible to your whole team, but your church administrator can also send a personal invitation to specific teachers asking them to fill the slot. Personal invitations are sent by an admin from Need Attention (with Invite Teachers) -- teachers cannot send personal invitations themselves.

When a teacher is personally invited:

• They see a You've been invited to sub section on their My Schedule page (and the request under Needs your response on their dashboard), even if the general sub request is still open to the rest of the team.
• It shows the class, the date, and who needs a sub.
• They can click Accept to claim the assignment or Decline to pass without affecting future invitations.

If no personally invited teacher accepts, the request remains open for any other teacher to claim through the regular I'll Help flow.

When Someone Claims Your Sub Request

When another teacher claims your sub request:

• The sub request is marked as Fulfilled.
• The schedule is updated with the new teacher's name.
• The schedule status changes back to Confirmed.
• You will receive a notification that your sub has been covered.

Claiming a Sub Request from Another Teacher

If you see an open sub request and want to help:

1. Go to My Schedule in the sidebar.
2. Look for the Substitutes needed section.
3. Review the available requests, which show the date, class name, and who needs a sub.
4. If you are already teaching on that date, you will see an "Already Teaching" label instead of the claim button.
5. Click I'll Help to claim the assignment.
6. You will be assigned as the teacher for that class on that date.

Tip: If you are personally invited to fill a sub request, you will see it under You've been invited to sub. You can click Accept to claim it or Decline to pass.

Declining a Sub Request

If you receive a personal invitation to substitute but are not available:

1. Click Decline next to the invitation.
2. The request remains open for other teachers to claim.
3. Declining does not affect your standing or future assignments in any way.

Checking Sub Request Status

You can check on your sub request from the class's lesson page: "Sub request pending - waiting for a volunteer" means no one has claimed it yet. Once another teacher claims it, the class moves to their schedule and you're notified that your sub is covered.

Best Practices

• Submit requests early. The sooner you request a substitute, the more likely it is that someone can step in.
• Provide a reason. While optional, a brief reason helps coordinators understand the situation.
• Check the schedule first. Before requesting a sub, check whether another teacher could trade dates with you.
• Keep your availability up to date. Setting your availability proactively helps administrators avoid scheduling you on dates when you are not available, reducing the need for sub requests.