Thinking of relocating (Dallas, San Antonio, Fort Worth: insurance, how much, hotel)

[Shadeenag]

Hi my name is Shadeenag and I'm from NYC I have 2 kids a 10 years old and a 4 years old and I work in the public school as an teacher assistant with a salary of $49,000 however I'm thinking of relocating to Texas to start a new life so my kids can I have a better upbringing oppose to staying here in NY. My sister recently moved here to Texas and I visited her one year and I loved it... However I know nothing of the job market there...I've heard that for teachers the pay isn't that great....Is it really true...can I survive living in Texas as a Teacher Assistant or should I go into another profession....Just to insert, I do have my Bachelors in Legal Studies but I haven't used it everysince I got pregnant and I just stayed in the Public school sys mostly because my children the hours were great and the vacation time is wonderful....Can anyone give me some advice?

[Grainraiser]

You will not be able to support yourself and your kids on a teachers assistant salary in the DFW area. I know this because thats what my wife does. She only does this because the job pays less than the maximum allowed by Social Security disability program (She draws a disability check from SS). You could be a substitute teacher and live here. Im not sure about the districts in the burbs, but i believe DISD now requires you to have a degree in order to sub. You could also look into alternative certification and become a teacher. My brother has a degree in Hotel/Restaurant mgmt and this is what he did. Your salary in NYC is a little more than what a starting teacher makes here but the cost of living is so much cheaper. I am assuming our definition for teachers assistant and substitute teacher are not one in the same.

[FarNorthDallas]

I think teacher aides make about $1,000/month. Certified teachers start at about $43,000.

[$DFW8$]

Originally Posted by Shadeenag

Hi my name is Shadeenag and I'm from NYC I have 2 kids a 10 years old and a 4 years old and I work in the public school as an teacher assistant with a salary of $49,000 however I'm thinking of relocating to Texas to start a new life so my kids can I have a better upbringing oppose to staying here in NY. My sister recently moved here to Texas and I visited her one year and I loved it... However I know nothing of the job market there...I've heard that for teachers the pay isn't that great....Is it really true...can I survive living in Texas as a Teacher Assistant or should I go into another profession....Just to insert, I do have my Bachelors in Legal Studies but I haven't used it everysince I got pregnant and I just stayed in the Public school sys mostly because my children the hours were great and the vacation time is wonderful....Can anyone give me some advice?

You will probably not be able to make it, especially with 2 kids. If you become a teacher, you could try to get a job at Northwest ISD. They are one of the highest paying school districts in Texas, so they have a TON of people applying there, so it can be real hard to even get an interview there. You would need t find a way to get noticed by somebody. One of my sisters is a principal in Northwest ISD and she loves it as it is a awesome school district. There is also a lot of other school districts in the DFW area that pay pretty good. But if you could do something else besides something in education, I would. Hope this helps!

[Grainraiser]

Originally Posted by FarNorthDallas

I think teacher aides make about $1,000/month. Certified teachers start at about $43,000.

That would be correct. I can't remember how much a substitute teacher makes but it's a whole lot more than a aide. If you hook up with a large school and they really like you it came become fulltime work. When I sub the teachers really liked me and I could have worked everyday if wanted.

[loves2read]

PLEASE do not come to TX thinking that you can get an alternative certificate and be a teacher--there are hundreds of people across the state--maybe 1000s -- who have tried that and not gotten work
there are teachers with education degrees that struggle to find a job if they move to different town or try to return to teaching after doing something else or maybe staying home to raise a baby...
read some of the posts on this forum and the San Antonio board and the Fort Worth board---
if you move here without a job you might get a job as a teaching asst but in this state that means you are working with special needs classes or ESL classes and if you don't speak Spanish it probably won't be ESL
I can't think of other teachers get aides...
aides barely make minimum wage--and remember you are paid for days you work--summer is not paid time...they can't afford to buy the district insurance for their families--I know some so that is not just guess work...

you could look for work as school secretary or clerk but unless you know someone it is very difficult to get those jobs as well--and they do not pay that much either--less than a qualified person makes in the business world...

I don't know what a BA or BS in Legal Studies means--is that like Pre-Law--can you be a legal secretary----can you be a municpal court clerk?
those are the jobs I would investigate with that degree...

there are a few high schools that offer classes in criminal law, criminal investigations as electives for students who want to be policemen mainly but I don't know how many schools might do that...so the odds would be pretty low in your favor...