CROWLEY, L.a. — Acadia Parish students were the last in Acadiana to head back to the classroom on Wednesday.
For some, the start of the school year is an exciting time to get back into the swing of things.
"We're most excited about seeing our students arrive today, getting to see their smiling faces," said Crowley Middle School's new principal, Jenna Latiolais. "We missed them and we get to welcome a whole new group of students into the 6th grade and we're just pumped to get the school year started."
"I love PE and physical stuff," said Darreon James, a 6th grader at Crowley Middle. "I don't like sitting in my seat all day, that's like just so boring."
But for others, it simply marks the end of summer vacation.
"It sucks a little bit because I just want to stay home," said Ayden Hollie, a 7th grader at CMS.
Superintendent of schools for the parish, Scott Richard, told KATC that unlike other districts across the nation, the parish is not feeling the sting of a teacher shortage with school staffing sitting between 98 and 99 percent with only two teaching positions to fill as of Tuesday. He said, however, in other positions like transportation, the parish is not so lucky — but much better off than it was this time last year.
"We are looking for drivers and substitute drivers because the parish is majority rural and both students and parents rely on buses to get to and from school on a daily basis," Richard told KATC, noting eight routes still need drivers. "We have about 10 percent of positions that are not filled, and we think we have them covered for the first couple of days of school, but we are looking to hire more drivers and we're asking parents to be patient."
For more on how to apply for one of these positions, you can click here.
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