Wanting to teach in Seattle Public Schools (Tacoma, Bellevue: low income, for sale)

[urbandeco]

Hello. I have 11 years experience teaching in Florida (elementary level). I am busting to move this June when the school year is over. My partner and i want to live in Seattle metro area and I would like to teach for Seattle City Schools. I dont mind getting my feet wet and teaching at an inner city school. So i am not picky. What are the opportunities for this? Will i have difficulty obtaining employment? I dont have WA certification yet but i am working on that. I have National Board Certification which according to the website, I am guranteed a preofessional 5 year certificate. I guess I would not have to take any teacher state tests either. I only have my bachelors degree, so i am not sure if that plays a role. However, I have taught successfully for over 10 years.

If I flew out to Seattle for a week, is there someone that i can talk to or an office for teaching that can provide me with advice. Does anybody have any advice on teaching/living in seattle? We would like to live in town, with transport near by. We would rent the first few years. What neighborhoods are the best for safety with cost as a factor. Say, 1200 a month. Any advice is great appreciated. I really want to live in a walkable neighborhood with a sense of community. ty again

[allforcats]

Originally Posted by urbandeco

I dont mind getting my feet wet and teaching at an inner city school.

Hi ty. Welcome to the idea of living in the Pacific Northwest! An enthusiastic, skilled teacher is always welcome!

Each city or area (it varies) has its own school district. If you want to teach in Seattle, that's the Seattle School District. I can't help you with the teaching specifics -- other posters who know the system can do that. But I can tell you we don't have any "inner city schools" here because we don't have any inner city neighborhoods. Some less affluent areas and some blue collar areas, but nothing at all like the east coast. Change your expectations about cities. There are no ghettoes here, and the whole area is pretty darned safe.

Seattle Metropolitan, a respected local magazine, conducted an in-depth survey of the schools in the Seattle neighborhoods and nearby cities. Here's the link: Dec. 2007 edition, Seattle Metropolitan Magazine » Back Issues (http://www.seattlemet.com/backissues/ - broken link)

Originally Posted by urbandeco

-- We would like to live in town, with transport near by.
-- We would rent the first few years. What neighborhoods are the best for safety with cost as a factor. Say, 1200 a month.
-- a walkable neighborhood with a sense of community. ty again

-- If you choose to live in a neighborhood in the City of Seattle, you will have lots of public bus transportation. The Metro bus system goes everywhere, is comfortable, dependable, and costs a great deal less than driving.

-- Living near where you work is a great idea, since the roads during commuting times can be very crowded. Here are two resources:

RENTALS:
The combined classifieds of the two leading newspapers in Seattle -- click on an area of the map to drill down to smaller locations:
NWapartments: Seattle apartment rentals, house rental listings, rental classifieds and other property rentals in Seattle, Tacoma, Bellevue and other Washington areas, cities and neighborhoods
And Craigslist:
craigslist: seattle-tacoma classifieds for jobs, apartments, personals, for sale, services, community, and events
Be sure never to send any money to anyone until you verify that they exist, and the property they are advertising exists in every detail...

NEIGHBORHOODS:
Here's a great learning tool, the neighborhoods map of the Seattle City Clerk's Office. Click anywhere to enlarge.
Seattle City Clerk's Neighborhood Map Atlas

Every neighborhood that you see on that map north of downtown Seattle plus Capitol Hill, will give you the walkability, community and safety you're probably looking for, and you can find apartments in the NW Source link above at your price. That's a slightly low price, but it's very doable.
I would also suggest West Seattle and Beacon Hill, very nice communities with many affordable apartments and houses.
(That great nameless swath just south of downtown is light industrial.)

Happy hunting!

[lkdahlia]

Seattle Public Schools' HR dept is not the greatest, but hopefully will improve quickly. Right now, you interview at each school you're interested in. Many Seattle schools south of the ship canal and a few north of the ship canal have majority low income, majority non-white populations. A few schools have very high concentrations of poverty. Some of the high(er) poverty schools that have good stuff going on: Maple, Van Asselt, New School, Madrona, Beacon Hill. This isn't a complete list - there are others as well.

There are a good number of NB cert teachers, and I think they have a forum. Try connecting via Center for Strengthening the Teaching Profession.

Many great, walkable neighborhoods! I'm partial to capitol hill and adjacent nabes, but the list is long.

[walshjes]

Hi Friends,
I googled "teaching in Seattle" and this thread came up. I realize it was 2008 when your conversation came about...but I'm wondering if any of you currently teach in the Seattle Public School District? I am looking to apply to SPS and wanted to hear from teachers what they thought of the district climate, job security, professional development opportunities, support from principals, etc. Thanks!

[isaackko]

Originally Posted by walshjes

Hi Friends,
I googled "teaching in Seattle" and this thread came up. I realize it was 2008 when your conversation came about...but I'm wondering if any of you currently teach in the Seattle Public School District? I am looking to apply to SPS and wanted to hear from teachers what they thought of the district climate, job security, professional development opportunities, support from principals, etc. Thanks!

My cousin and her husband are both elementary school teachers in Seattle.

Shoot me your e-mail in a DM.

[hiladil]

Originally Posted by isaackko

My cousin and her husband are both elementary school teachers in Seattle.

Shoot me your e-mail in a DM.

Hello there,

I stumbled upon this thread while researching teaching in Seattle elementary schools. I will be graduating with my dual credential (general ed and special ed) in December of 2014 and am curious about the same info walshjes asked for. I will be moving from the San Francisco Bay Area.

Thank you!