A week before school begins, Atlanta Public Schools reported the district has filled all but six of its roughly 3,200 teaching positions.

The district had openings for about a half dozen teachers as of Monday, according to district officials. Superintendent Meria Carstarphen told board members those vacancies were in harder-to-hire areas such as special education, science and math education, and for the district's English to Speakers of Other Languages program.

The precise number of openings varies day-to-day because the district still is hiring new employees and receiving resignations. Any vacancies that remain unfilled on Aug. 12, the first day of school, will be staffed by substitute teachers.

This year, APS offered a $500 bonus to employees who refer a special education teacher who the district ends up hiring.

The district said it has filled all of its principal and assistant principal vacancies.