J.K. Rowling Voted Most Wanted as Substitute Teacher
In celebration of American Education Week's Substitute Educators Day, the National Education Association released the results of their second annual poll that asks which celebrity people would most like to have be a substitute teacher for a day.
J.K. Rowling, creator of the "Harry Potter" series won this year with 25 percent of the vote. The runners-up were Microsoft founder Bill Gates with 23 percent, followed by golf superstar Tiger Woods with 21 percent of the vote. "Ugly Betty" actress America Ferrera got 18 percent of the vote followed by director Steven Spielberg with 13 percent of the more than 4,500 responses to the poll.
"Teachers make magic every day in the classroom when they educate youngsters," NEA President Reg Weaver said. "J.K. Rowling has brought her own magic touch to millions of children by sparking their interest and cultivating a love of reading. Now that the Harry Potter series has come to a close, perhaps Ms. Rowling would like to join the teaching corps--even if just for a day--and keep the adventure alive."
The results weren't so close last year. Actress Jessica Alba won with a healthy lead. Interesting.
U.S. school districts are facing a shortage of substitute teachers. A survey by Utah State University showed that 96 percent of the nation's school districts said they had trouble recruiting and keeping substitutes. Solutions offered by NEA's Substitute Teachers Caucus include increasing pay for substitute teachers, offering incentives to subs who work a certain number of days in a given year, and providing substitutes with training.