Welcome to Gaia! ::

For those of you that didn't know, I used to be a high school teacher for the past three years. Not bad for being 25. Anyway, my contract expired and I didn't get the option to renew, so my life has been in limbo. I picked up my things and moved back to Las Vegas where I decided I was going to start over again.

I got a job working at at restaurant/nightclub called LAVO inside the Palazzo hotel. If you're ever in Vegas, check it out. I'm a busser, so I don't have any real responsibilities besides clearing tables and pouring water for guests.

I really do like working for LAVO, but being there makes me angry that teachers don't get that much respect or credit.

As a busser there, I'll be averaging anywhere between $50,000-$60,000 a year in tips alone. That's over $20,000 a year more than I was making as a high school teacher.

After 90 days, I'll have full health coverage, and I mean full health coverage. Medical, dental, vision, accidental, mental, and psychological. I'll be able to go to almost any doctor in the city and get treatment for next to nothing. My school could barely even offer me medical, and it was a ridiculous amount taken out of my bi-monthly check.

To me, it's insulting to know that teachers don't make the pay that they deserve. Especially after all that schooling. One of my co-workers is a 19 yr old food runner (Takes the food to the tables; that's it) who will be making almost 80K, and I have friends that are teachers going back for their masters in education so they can break 35K. Why is this alright? How can this be justified? I really can't see it.

I love teaching, and I will go back to it. There is nothing that makes me happier in this world than walking into a classroom knowing that you will make a difference in someone's life. However, it's really depressing to know that I could have less responsibility, less leadership, and perform mindless grunt work and littearly double my yearly salary by gathering dirty plates for 8 hours a day.

It just doesn't seem right, that bussers can make 50,000; Valets can make 70,000; cocktail wiatresses can make 100,000; yet teachers make 25,000-30,000. I'm just annoyed that for the next year I won't be putting any of my schooling and experience to use and make more money in the long run. Argh...

Ok, I'm done.

It perplexes me how job markets work. Right now I'm going through hell because the town I moved to has substantially lower pay. Back home hotel desk people make between $8-9 an hour, and night auditors easily make $9 an hour to start. Here in Springfield I found out Night auditors make $7.50/hour. In STL an administrative assistant makes somewhere between $10/hour to $14/hour. In Springfield administrative assistants make somewhere between $7-8 an hour. So essentially when minimum wage hits $7 certain clerical, receptionist, and hotel jobs will have to raise their wages or be violating federal/state laws.

That bothers me, these jobs require computer skills, office skills, degrees, and superb customer service (the hotel industry especially).

It is a crime how little teachers are paid. Social workers too (thus why I left counseling to pursue my business degree). With teachers it's particularly distressing because teachers even have a union- a rather vocal union. I can understand the fact that public schools are at the mercy of taxes and public funds-- but I dislike that the allocation of resources in a school district deprives the most critical components (teachers). I especially dislike board members- the pompous jerks who waddle around to meetings and decide to plop the money into cushier chairs for the administration building and in the same breath deny teachers their due and proper supplies for the classroom.

Though at least teachers do make a living wage in some areas. I have the same level of education as many teachers-- and I am struggling to make enough income to survive.

As to Headhunter:

WOOOO HOOOOO VEGAS ROAD TRIP! Let's saw off the top of my car to make it a convertible!!! Here we come!!!!

I agree it's a cryin' shame that teachers (and professors at that) don't make enough (or what we feel is enough). They are who instruct the future generation and instill knowledge, values, and more into their heads. Without teachers and professors most (if not all of us) would be unable to do even the simplest of tasks like tying our shoes or writing our names.

My dad was a professor for at least 7 or 8 years before he...well you know... xd And my cousin is a teacher at a local high school. They both seem(ed) to enjoy their work. My cousin says it's just hard by the last class of the day to keep students occupied and engaged in their work because they all want to leave or are thinking about other things. 3nodding My dad also seemed to enjoy it because he always liked to see the look on students' faces when they finally understood a very hard concept and he helped them learn it.

My dad managed to get health coverage and other benefits relatively quickly (I think within a month or so). I don't know about my cousin as she doesn't talk much about health benefits, etc.

As far as coming to Vegas, count me in baby! I'd love to get away from Kansas even just for a little bit (see more of the country blaugh ).

It all depends on the private shcool. They receive all their funding from outside sources, so they can pay as long as tuition is up and they have sponsorship. Unfortunately, I was at a public school, and therefore, not that lucky.


You forgot about gas guzzling hummers during the middle of an oil crisis. Superintendendents love those things. What's sad is that I'm really not joking about that one...

We have that same problem here. Teachers that don't want to teach, but don't know what else they should be doing with their lives and degrees. It's one of the reasons that kids here get a bad deal on education.

Nice. That wouldn't be a bad place to be, but it takes a while to build up tenure in many school districts; around 15-20 years. I wish teachers could start out making that though.

For those who have responded to my rant, thanks, I feel a bit better.

Oh, and secretly hinting at a 21+ road trip to vegas? That's not my style...

I'd BLATANTLY hint at a 21+ road trip to vegas. In case you forgot what the old banner looked like...

I would full out suggest a Spring break Excursion to Vegas to see you Hank-- but a few snags exist:


-Not everyone has a Spring break, seeing as people have full time jobs and families in the guild.

-Even those who do have Spring break tend to have it on different weeks from University to University

-The cost of going. For some guild members this might only be a few hours drive, for others of us it is a few days drive, and for poor Ameliechan, Doressa, and Sablara this is a trek across many, many countries

-Plus with people meeting in person I'd have to pull out ye olde Sock Puppets to do the whole skit on internet safety.

geez! i work as a machinist and am only making about $26k a year. and that's with astronomical amounts of overtime. my base pay only gives me roughly 20k. but i do understand where you're coming from hank. melissa, my fiancee, was working as a teacher for 5 years, and was making less per week than she is now as a training specialist for the local casino.