Gwinnett County Public Schools measured substitute fill rates school by school, then redesigned hiring and retention tactics after confirming they could be selective without sacrificing coverage.
Monthly, school-by-school fill-rate reporting gave the district confidence to reduce substitute hiring while improving quality.
Gwinnett tracks active substitutes (4,400), percent working (94.5%), and systemwide fill rates (just under 90%) to guide staffing decisions.
Targeted recruiting and attention to what keeps substitutes returning are central to raising fill rates and reducing instructional disruption.
# What happened A webinar hosted by Education Week featured Gwinnett County Public Schools and Frontline Education describing a data-driven approach to substitute hiring, retention, and fill-rate management. Gwinnett's substitute team publishes monthly fill rates for every school and uses those numbers to make hiring and operational choices.
# Why it matters
# The Gwinnett baseline
These measures gave Gwinnett confidence to tighten hiring standards and focus on retention and placement rather than simply adding bodies.
# How they changed hiring Gwinnett rebuilt its substitute hiring process to prioritize fit and reliability over volume. The district used the school-by-school fill-rate data to decide where it could hire fewer substitutes and where it needed to recruit more. That allowed them to be more selective about who entered the substitute pool while maintaining system coverage.
# How they use fill-rate data Monthly fill-rate reports go to the district board and guide operational responses. The data reveals which schools struggle to get coverage and which ones consistently achieve high fill rates. With that visibility, the district can:
# What keeps substitutes coming back The webinar outlined attention to common retention levers (described by Gwinnett's HR leader) rather than offering a single solution. The district focuses on practical, building-level factors that influence a substitute's decision to accept and repeat assignments. These include predictable scheduling, clear communication about duties, and supports inside the school that make a substitute's day manageable.
# What drives substitutes away
# Control points for administrators Gwinnett's message: more of your fill-rate outcome is within your control than many administrators assume. Tracking school-by-school performance enables targeted interventions, such as concentrating reliable substitutes in high-need schools, improving onboarding, or changing assignment practices that cause substitutions to be declined.
# Speakers and perspectives
# Practical next steps for districts
# Takeaway
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