Thank you for your interest in serving as a substitute teacher through the BCIU Guest Teacher program. Here you will find all of the information you need to submit your application and prepare for your training date.
Deadline to Apply
July 9, 2024
Applicant Interviews
July 25, 2024
Deadline to Apply
November 8, 2024
Applicant Interviews
November 21, 2024
*snow dates Feb. 5-6
Deadline to Apply
January 10, 2025
Applicant Interviews
January 23, 2025
*snow dates Apr. 2-3
The following application materials must be received by the application deadline:
Please mail application materials to:
Guest Teacher Program
BCIU Office of Human Resources
P.O. Box 16050
Reading, PA 19612-6050
Once your application has been received, you will be contacted to schedule an interview with an administrator from one of the participating districts on the interview date noted above. You will be notified within one (1) week as to the outcome of your interview. Please do not submit additional materials until you are contacted.
If you are accepted into the program, the following items must be submitted prior to training:
Guest Teacher applicants must also register on the Pennsylvania Department of Education’s Teacher Information Management System (TIMS) online web portal and initiate an emergency permit request.
Click Here to Register for an Account in TIMS.
All documentation must be submitted no later than the Monday prior to the first day of training.
Pennsylvania law mandates that all Pennsylvania school entities provide training to employees who have direct contact with children, specifically, these trainings focus on child abuse recognition and reporting and youth suicide awareness and prevention.
Act 126 mandates that all Pennsylvania school entities provide mandatory training on child abuse recognition and reporting to all employees who have direct contact with children. A minimum of three (3) hours of training is required every five (5) years.
If you are a new Guest Teacher Program applicant and completed this training previously, please submit any training documentation with your new applicant paperwork. If you have not completed the training previously, it is available to you at no cost through our online provider, SafeSchools.
Act 71 mandates that all Pennsylvania school entities provide four (4) hours of age-appropriate youth suicide awareness and prevention training every five (5) years to all educators in schools serving students in grades six through twelve.
Because an emergency permit allows a Guest Teacher to substitute in grades K–12, Act 71 training must be completed annually as part of the renewal process. It is available to you at no cost through our online provider, SafeSchools.
The Act 126 and Act 71 training modules may be accessed through the Vector Solutions web site at http://berksiu.pa.safeschools.com. Your log-in for Vector Solutions is the email address that we currently have on file. (If you are a new Guest Teacher, it would be the email you provided us during the application process.) Click “Sign in” and “Log Me In!” Your training assignments will be listed and include:
Once you have completed a training module, click the blue-ribbon icon to print a completion certificate. Please include this certificate(s) with your new applicant or renewal paperwork.
If you experience issues with Vector Solutions, please email SafeSchools@berksiu.org.