A mix of illnesses prompted leaders to temporarily close some schools in eastern Idaho over the past week, and one rural elementary principal says a lack of community substitutes exacerbated the problem. The district runs on a four-day school week with no classes on Friday. Principal Leslie Hoopes told EdNews that 13 staff members were sick last Thursday and 15% of students were absent the day before. “It was a whole gambit that hit staff members and students,” Hoopes said. When Hazel Stuart teachers call in sick, they first try to cover shifts with paraprofessionals or other staff members.