Our names and birthdates, like other prospective subs', were forwarded to the Utah Bureau of Criminal Identification, then run for active warrants here and across the country. Fingerprints are processed through criminal databases in Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah and Wyoming.

The process can take six to eight weeks.

But district officials say they can't wait that long.

So subs may start teaching before the background check is complete.

Also, fewer than 7 percent are interviewed by school bosses, and less than 43 percent have character references checked before being hired, a 2002 Substitute Teaching Institute (STI) report states.

Districts say they have found few problems in the checks. But in recent years, a Granite District substitute, working before the background check was done, was arrested for investigation of sexual abuse of a teenage relative. His rap sheet included providing alcohol to a minor, lewdness and other crimes.

Several districts are lobbying the state to do their own checks and speed things up, Jolley said.

Some are setting higher standards for new subs. Davis and Jordan require a bachelor's degree. Davis raised the minimum age to 20. Granite requires an associate's degree and an eight-hour training course.

"Five years ago, the qualifications to be a substitute teacher were to have a thorough background check and a pulse," Granite District human resources director Mike Fraser recently told his school board. "That is no longer the case."

Pay not a draw

Attracting and keeping good people isn't easy. The typical Utah sub earns about $45 each day in rural areas, and $55 to $65 in urban districts, STI director Geoffrey Smith estimates.

That's about $6.50 to $9 an hour — without benefits — not far from national averages.

We were paid about $60 a day, and donated our hard-earned money to school district foundations.

Some districts have increased sub pay, but there's only so much they can do. Utah teacher salaries lag behind national averages in a state that ranks last in the country for per-student spending, and first in crowded classes.

Jordan District would need $750,000 for sub benefits alone, Jolley said.

But officials are getting creative.

Box Elder School District offers subs an extra $5 a day — about a 10 percent raise — for completing 10 hours of STI training.

"Hopefully, with better-trained substitutes, the learning can progress," assistant superintendent Terry Jackson said. "In the days of accountability, it's important that we have each and every day be productive."

Training, some say, is key to success and job satisfaction for the subs.