Re: tutor absenteeism

[JANE NELSON <JNELSON@UWYO.EDU>]

We don't have problems with missing tutors, perhaps because we are primarily
staffed by professionals (teachers), with some undergraduate and graduate
student interns.  I do remember times in the past when we had more problems
than we do now; I am guessing that as we've gotten more and more professional
in our attitudes towards writing center work, we've gotten more and more
responsble about how to handle missing work days.  Here's how we handle it:

1.  Pages in our staff journal are devoted to requests for substitutes.  At
staff meetings, we announce who needs a substitute and for when.  People do a
lot of trading around of hours.  We keep a running record of who is doing what,
and who "owes" what.

2.  As director, I will do a lot of the substituting, but then those hours are
"owed" the writing center in some fashion.  Many people make up their hours
during final week; this is how we keep ourselves open during final week, in
fact,

3.  This procedure has worked well, but in semesters past we have also asked
each tutor to identify times during the week when he or she can show up for
substitute hours.  Everyone gets that schedule, and then those who call in sick
are asked to try and find their own substitutes.

4.  As I reflect back on this year, I discover that there was never a time when
we had to scramble to find a tutor at the last minute.  This is a direct result
of the way in which we are staffed--professional teachers of writing and
interns who are selected through a competitive process.  No one would dream of
showing up late, either.  I bless my lucky stars to have this kind of staffing
and commitment!

Jane