I was really busy this weekend and just saw your post.
I live in South Mississippi and have been a High School level special ed teacher for 16 years. I am finally at $35,430 this year (16th year with a BS degree). That includes the $1,000 dollar supplement that I get for coaching girl's soccer.
The pay here is a joke. I still live month to month considering my bring home salary is only around $2,400. I am still paying off my student loans.
The thing that keeps me teaching is not the money, it is the knowledge that I am making a difference in the lives of these kids around here. I can't tell you how bad the poverty is here and how many kids are from generations that have survived off of government assistance. So many of these kids dont have a single person telling them that they can be somebody, that they can go to college, until they run into a teacher that actually cares.
I am not just a teacher here. I am a mom to every kid that needs me, I am a counselor, I am a nurse on occasion, and I am the only person that believes in some of these kids.
When I think about quitting, I can't because I don't know who would be here to dry tears, give encouragement, bandage scrapes, and push these kids to get out of this small town and make a life for themselves.
So many people think that teaching High School is so hard, but I'm telling you these kids are still kids, even if they are 6'2 and 280lbs. or 17 with 2 kids. They still need someone that cares about them.
I will never be rich teaching, at least not financially. But I will be able to look back and know that I really did something here on this earth that made a difference. You can't take money with you when you leave this earth anyway, lol. So I'll just keep trudging along. My kids and I have enough food to eat, a warm house to live in and pets to love us to death. My car may be 10 years old but it still runs. I'm blessed in so many ways that the financial aspect is something I can live without.
Teaching 16 years and making a difference one day at a time!!! |