Teaching in New Mexico (Albuquerque, Santa Fe: low income, rent to own, how much)

[stagerlee]

[FONT='Times New Roman','serif']My wife and I are thinking of relocating to New Mexico. We have limited knowledge of the state but now live in Southern California near Palm Springs, so we are used to desert living (heat!). I’m a school teacher and would most likely continue in that profession. So, if anyone has info on school districts, quality of life and/or general info on particular locations we would appreciate you sending it along.[/font]

[6 FOOT 3]

Hey Stagerlee....you might want to check out the link i provided which is with the Department of Education in New Mexico.

New Mexico Public Education Department - PED

6/3

[Devin Bent]

You are not getting a lot of response. Maybe we are burned out on general questions, and it might help if you asked something more specific.

But I'll take a cut at it.

Perhaps you could say that the defining characteristic of New Mexico is that it is not just another state -- it has a unique culture, architecture, and cuisine. You drive in or get off the plane, train or bus, and even if you know better, it still seems like a different country. People visit here and really do ask what country this is.

Beyond this -- low density population and sunshine. Albuquerque is our biggest metro area and spreads over a huge area, but still is considerablly less than a million people. The next biggest are considerably less than 200,000. We are by far the least crowded of all the southern tier states. The low density and sunshine result in a lot of outdoor activity.

But much sunshine means little rain. Ocean beaches? -- well, I try not to think about them. Until all the ice melts and the water rises -- we just don't have the ocean. Xeric gardening is catching on and is dominant in some areas.

New Mexico traditionally has less housing segregation than many places, so you may see more of the homes of the poor. This is changing IMO in some of the bigger, growing, cities.

It is a low income state with some of the problems attendant on that.

On the other hand, the economy has done well in recent years and seems to be bucking the current down turn. Housing prices -- I think -- have softened some and they never went up like they did in California, Nevada, Arizona. So it might be a good time to buy.

Cost of Living is about average, IMO, with Santa Fe / Los Alamos the most expensive. Most of that is housing with the big differences at the upper end. $10 million dollar homes in Santa Fe may drive up the average, but they have little to do with the cost of whatever I buy.

You probably get your best housing or land buys in some of smaller places. But if you drive a lot of miles to buy your groceries you can run into a different type of expense. A small town in many states is all crowded in with other towns and has all the close shopping you need. In uncrowded New Mexico, a small town can be in the middle of nowhere.

There is a large range of climate variation except that it tends to be dry and sunny most places. But temperature and snowfall can vary markedly and altitude not latitude is the driver. We have microclimates, but at a first cut, altitude tells you what you need to know. 7,000 feet gets some snow and does get cold in Winter, but very rarely hits a 100 or above in the summer. Go lower if you want warmer/hotter. Generally, as you go south, you go lower.

There are a lot of mountains.

[stagerlee]

Thanks much! New to this arena and your first comment on gebneral questions was very helpful.

[Pintada Kid]

Ill give some Positive input about N.M. I think lots of Californias and people from both Coast would love to live in N.M. we have Wonderful people the Best Fresh air in the center of N.M. lots of Snow sometimes in winter and cool weather and a couple of years ago we had over 30 inches of Rain in less then a years time. If your a teacher and like small towns theres probably lots of openings there and in need of teachers. Most people like the city life its all theyve known but living in the Country takes some getting use to but its well worth it rent or rent to own to explore N.M. because each place you visit can be more beautiful then the Last. Mi Querido Nuevo Mejico and its people i would never think of living anywhere else in the World. Ive Driven about 2 million miles of N.M.highways and backroads and been in most every city and town. The East Mountain Area is my favorite. Close to Albuquerque and Santa Fe and they have lots of Activities in the Summer and Fall and its like living in the Country with Wonderful people and lots of areas to explore. el pintada kid pintada kid at webtv dot net

[bacich]

It's Not Easy Looking For A Teaching Job Long Distance. I'm An Art Teacher From Phila. And Will Move If I Can Find A Position In New Mexico. My First Choice Would Be On The Rez. Even Though I Have Lived In A Large City All My Life, I'm Ready For A Change. I've Applied For My New Mexico Teaching Licence. How Much Luck Have You Had For A Job?

[Jim West]

New Mexico has the lowest ranked school systems in the US. Even the locals refer to them as "drop-out factories". The pay is poor, and in most areas, English is the second language.

If you are looking for a career move, there are better choices.

Mesalands CC at Tucumcari is filing lawsuits against a teacher and a secretary who left the school mid term. They now put a clause in your contract that if you leave before they fire you, that you have to pay them $2500. Front page in the Quay County Sun.

[newmex]

Originally Posted by bacich

It's Not Easy Looking For A Teaching Job Long Distance. I'm An Art Teacher From Phila. And Will Move If I Can Find A Position In New Mexico. My First Choice Would Be On The Rez. Even Though I Have Lived In A Large City All My Life, I'm Ready For A Change. I've Applied For My New Mexico Teaching Licence. How Much Luck Have You Had For A Job?

If you want change, you'll find it on the reservations. Boy, will you find it. Poke around on this forum and look for all the stories of folks who've decided it was not the best idea to teach on the "Rez". Walking on eggshells and using your wildest imagination in order to not offend the denizens was only part of the prerequisite as some of these teachers describe. It takes a special person to delicately work amongst them. Somebody dropping in from The Bronx to teach would not last a day.

Here's one of the threads...

http://www.city-data.com/forum/new-m...light=to+teach

[ideascubed]

My absolute best teaching experience was in rural New Mexico. (I've taught in public schools that ran the gamut of lifestyles from schools that had serious money where the kids drove Lamborghinis, to middle class, rural and inner city.) The kids were incredible. The parents were supportive of ME! The teachers were the salt of the earth, dedicated to the core. The politics of teaching, the saddest thing in the world.

The reality is that the state has around a million souls, most of the land is federally owned, and there are not enough tax dollars to support education. The teachers make a little more than working at Walmart. But, teachers aren't in education for the money, are they? As an outsider, the newbie is basically holding up a mirror to the community as well as the school's officials that their students (who probably speak three languages, English being the third) can barely read at third grade level. The students drive quite a distance (some are on a 2 hour one way bus trip) to get the education they get. The rez has no electricity and no running water. Inner city students had it better than the students from the Rez.

I've noticed that when people get caught for whatever reason, they tend to take it out on the messenger. The local officials are embarrassed at the reality of being part of the "drop-out factories". They do not appreciate being told or shown in any way shape or form that their students need help with improving anything.

My suggestion, make a bazillion dollars in anything but education, create a foundation, use the foundation to help make fundamental changes to your favorite New Mexico rural schools. I was attacked and seriously hurt in an inner city school, so that's why I'm prejudiced against anyone going into teaching. In fact, my next book is titled "Mama, don't let your kids grow up to be .............
TEACHERS!" LOL.

Living in New Mexico was like going back to the 1950's, with all of those experiences, family values, an easier way of life, a lowering of stress in ways I can't even describe. But I'll try with this imagery, think of Washington, D.C. during traffic hour. Now imagine you've driven 28 miles without seeing another soul. That's New Mexico.

Another good suggestion is read the local papers online and see what the police blotter says. That should help your decision in moving to the areas that interest you.

Please realize that the Santa Fe is called the City Different for a reason. The state should be called the State Different. Different parts have different cultural things. If you live in a town like Milan, you'll drive over 60 miles into the "City" Albuquerque to get some necessities of life.

Letting the New Mex students sit wherever they wanted to was an eye opener. The Navajo's sat off to themselves, the Pueblo's in another corner, the Anglo's (all three of them) in another area, and the Hispanics (the Majority and their 500 year local history) in another clique. In the inner city school, it was a history in multi-culturalism at its finest, kids from Europe, Cuba, Pakistan, South America all sat together.

Best of luck in your adventure!

[Cathy4017]

Originally Posted by bacich

It's Not Easy Looking For A Teaching Job Long Distance. I'm An Art Teacher From Phila. And Will Move If I Can Find A Position In New Mexico. My First Choice Would Be On The Rez. Even Though I Have Lived In A Large City All My Life, I'm Ready For A Change. I've Applied For My New Mexico Teaching Licence. How Much Luck Have You Had For A Job?

Why do you capitalize every word?