A favorable climate for developing and implementing a systematic substitute teacher program in the Ware County School System, which serves about 4,000 southeastern Georgia K-12 students, was created by mandates for the 1988-89 school year by the Georgia Board of Education. The program detailed within this document, written to comply with these new requirements, addresses the assignment of substitute teachers based on qualifications, the consistency of substitute teacher selection processes from school to school, and the initial inservice training for substitute teachers. Adopted by the Ware County School Board Members in August 1988, the program requires principals to select substitute teachers from an approved list issued by the county office; substitute teachers on that list have been ranked according to priority classifications based on their educational qualifications. To increase the effectiveness of substitute teachers, the program requires a 4-hour orientation session before any substitute teacher can be employed. Additionally, optional staff enhancement training is provided in child development, classroom management, and instructional delivery. As a result of the program (and as an indicator of its success), the use of substitute teachers with only high school diplomas decreased from 70.1 percent in 1987-88 to 40.1 percent in 1988-89. (17 references) (KM)