Teachers in Chicago (Blue Island: rentals, crime, credit)

[Nowisthetimeforallgoodmen]

We are moving up to Chicago in a few months due to a job transfer. I will obviouslly have a job, as I am the one being transfered, however my wife will be in the market for one. She is a teacher and has historically taught elementry special education, althought she is totally open to branching out from what she has taught in the past.

So how is the teacher market in the city of Chicago and what do they pay? This is something that seems a little tough to find information about. Also, it seems like there are a lot of private schools, so she may end up there to avoid ending up at a school that does not provide a great work enviroment.

Fortunately for her, she is bi-lingual, which is a uge asset where we currently live, although I am not sure how much of a leg up it will give her there. She also has a masters degree....

Anything thoughts from teachers would be appreciated.

[chitown85]

The Chicago Public Schools are not that great, and new teachers tend to get stuck in the worse schools. If she is not used to that environment, I would avoid it. Starting salary varies depending on the job classification, but they pay more for bilingual teachers (due to high demand). I have heard starting salaries hover around $50K a year +/- a few thousand for CPS.

For the suburbs: Finding a job in a high paying school district is tough. If she is Spanish bilingual, she should not have any trouble getting a job in the Northwest and West suburbs. High school teachers start anywhere from $45K to $55K, with elementary/middle school about $10K less on average. The salary varies widely by school district. School districts in the suburbs are not tied to specific suburbs. You can have parts of several different suburbs in one school district, and likewise, one suburb split into several different school districts.

Specifically, elementary school districts in the northwest and west suburbs have a huge need for bilingual teachers due to the large Hispanic population. Your commute is a big factor on where to live and look for a job. Give us an idea of where you are working and planning to live and we can provide you with school district's for your wife to work. It would not be fun to drive 90 minutes each way to get to work at a school.

[Nowisthetimeforallgoodmen]

Well, I will be working in the loop and we will most likely be living in that vacinity. West Loop/River North/LP....

[Attrill]

The market for teaching jobs in all of Illinois (and all of the nation really) is awful. Due to lack of revenues school systems all across the state are laying off teachers, or at least not hiring new teachers to replace old ones. Many private schools are also facing problems, the Catholic schools have been making cuts for a few years now.

There are some jobs out there, but far fewer than there have been in decades.

[Holdencaulfield]

Special education teachers have an easier time finding jobs than other teachers due to the higher then usual demand. It also helps that she is bilingual. Private schools, particulary Catholic schools pay much less. It's true that new teachers get the shaft and get stuck in the worst schools. Having a masters in education is actually a liability in Chicago as they often require a higher salary. Chicago Public Schools are all about cost cutting nowadays, just yesterday they slated 8 schools for closing/restructing. All the staff, including the lunch crew and janitors will be fired.

[chet everett]

As someone with direct experience teaching in CPS I have to weigh in.

I have to disagree with many of the points above. Firstly I do agree that the majority of CPS schools perform very poorly, this is due to many reasons but NOT because of any stinginess when it comes to hiring NEW teachers with advanced degrees. (the pension rules make it different for hiring experienced teachers and generally those from Illinois would really lose out, but that is another scenario altogether)

The "Mayor's fix-it guy" is Ron Huberman and he is HUGE believer in technology. The web sites of CPS are all being redone and the HR stuff is better than it has ever been. Check this out:
Salary Schedules
Why Teach At CPS? - Teacher Salary
Teaching at CPS - Frequently Asked Questions

It is further very very very clear that having an advanced degrees is valued, but not so much that there is any real budget impact on the school system--- this is BY DESIGN as the PRINCIPALS do strongly prefer hiring staff that is well trained and the little bit extra it costs DOES NOT COUNT AGAINST THE SCHOOL AS CPS DESIGNATES A FIXED NUMBER OF POSITIONS AND NOT THE AMOUNT THE PRINCIPAL CAN SPEND!!!!

The fact that CPS is re-organizing some schools and forcing all the staff to re-apply for jobs HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH BUDGET and EVERYTHING TO DO WITH LACK OF PERFORMANCE. This is something that ought to be appplauded and for folks like the OP it is a DARNED GOOD THING as the odds that a PRINCIPAL that will have to make a hiring decision between some one whose resume includes being part of the mess at a re-org'd school VS a fresh face with some desirable skills IS A NO BRAINER and most Principals will choose the new teacher unless it is clear that they are incapable of success in the kind of situation they will be facing. It is true that CPS has lots of schools filled with kids whose parents are messed up, crime / drugs / poverty are not excuses but they are the everyday reality of LOTS of kids. The kids from such homes move around when they get kicked out of their rentals, lack a whole range of preparation and generally make the teacher's job much much harder. CPS does spend a lot on money on schools, and the ridiculous spigots that enriched corrupt insiders have been dialed down, but given how bad off many kids are they just can't spend more to fix things. They need tough skilled teachers and policies that make success a real goal. Not sure if they'll get there but if the OP's spouse is motivated she should go for it.

The suburban schools THAT ARE MAKING STAFF CUTS DUE TO LACK OF FUNDS are a whole different story. By and large those teachers WILL NOT BE COMPETING for jobs in CPS as they'd have to move to Chicago, face a situation where they would likely not receive full credit for experience in suburbs (as there are separate pensions systems for CPS vs the rest of the teachers in Illinois...) and basically be getting into a situation that they probably were trying to AVOID by getting a job in the burbs in the first place. In some suburbs there are pockets of kids that have it really rough, and many suburbs have a very stingy policy toward schools, so it is not like there is some bright line separating things EXCEPT for the fact that CPS has a very large bureaucratic structure that is much more a target. I am sure there is corruption in some suburban schools but by and large the School Boards are local volunteer parents, very different than in the CPS...

I have no idea how the new plan will play out, but CPS needs special ed teachers, especially those that are bilingual and I would be surprised if the OP's spouse could be any better a candidate on paper. I suspect that if they fill out an electronic app and Huberman's new systems work as he wants the odds of interviews are EXCELLENT.

[Holdencaulfield]

I've heard of the residence requirements for Chicago Public Schools, but I know many teachers and administrators in CPS who don't live in Chicago. Is there some type of waiver or grandfather clause? Or is this rule just overlooked?

[chet everett]

There are a pretty large number of grandfathered positions, some folks lived in the burbs before the rule and there was never a move to force them to sell house and stuff. With new hires it is different. It is a very damned odd thing, as every couple of years they actually go on a "witch hunt" to track down "cheaters" but I really do not understand what it accomplishes.

The last I heard the waivers were also VERY hit or miss and in some cases applying for a waiver, then having it denied then NOT moving into Chicago fast enough resulted in dismissal EVEN THOUGH this meant that the classroom would be SHORT an otherwise qualified teacher. Just blows your mind...

[Nowisthetimeforallgoodmen]

Well thank you very much for all your input! My wife will certainly be happy to hear all of the great comments that have come from all of you. We will be living in the city limits so teaching at CPS will not be a problem from that perspective. Just knowing that there is a demand for her skillset is certainly reassuring.

Thanks

[ImaloneJill]

My daughter officially got her walking papers today. She was to be tenured this year, but because she is a masters plus, she is too expensive for the district (Blue Island) to keep.

If anyone knows of anything in Special Ed, please message me.
Thanks. Really, thanks.