Washington teachers (Seattle, Mount Vernon: sales, condo, home)

[bubblebee]

My husband and I are considering a relocation to Washington from Idaho. I have been an elementary school teacher in Idaho for the past couple of years. I am trying to find out what it is like to be a teacher in WA. Pros? Cons? Health benefits? Salary?

Thank you!

[Inkpoe]

They're looking to lay off teachers here, I don't know if you can even get a job as a teacher here. Maybe it's better on the Eastern side of WA.

[rkcarguy]

My wife is one of the 3,300 let go in the last 18 months in WA state, and they are looking at more layoff's. My wife had 2 years experience and I hear they are looking at cutting those with 3-5 years now... Washington is 43rd in per/student spending out of 50 states, our retraining programs are full of teachers now.
Had my job not panned out here we would have been heading your way to Idaho, I do not like what this state has become.
If you are h@ll bent on heading out this way you should post your school and city you are leaving so one of the nations 125,000 laid off teachers can have a shot at a job, and have another one lined up before you move.
If there is openings be very cautious, some area's of Seattle will get you $500,000 plus for home or condo and you'll only get paid $35-$60k depending on experience and education level...which is why the position is open..
No realtor "it's so cute here" sales pitch....just the cold hard facts.

[j_k_k]

Originally Posted by Inkpoe

They're looking to lay off teachers here, I don't know if you can even get a job as a teacher here. Maybe it's better on the Eastern side of WA.

It's not.

[West coast at heart]

Very timely thread. My wife and I are looking to move to the Mount Vernon area in the summer of 2011 (maybe sooner). I am a nurse and she is a special education teacher. Any insight on the special education job market is fairing? My wife is in her tenth year as a special education teacher.

We are moving to be closer to her parents and also to take her back home to the west coast. I am hoping that things will be different for special ed and also different by June 2011.

Any thoughts?

wc@h

[bubblebee]

Thank you for all the honest information everyone. My husband is a nurse- I'm now hoping that the market is better for RN's than it is for teachers? That seems to be the case in most places we've looked into. I'm willing to take a substitute teaching position and wait it out. For all our sakes, hopefully the cut backs in education end soon. Teachers are still being hired in Idaho (surely at a slower rate than before) but salaries and benefits have been getting worse and worse since I entered the field in 2006. It is true that the cost of living is much lower here.

[rkcarguy]

The nursing positions are going away as well, people are retraining and there is just too many un-employed out there....
As far as substitute teaching, it is different in different districts. Ours chooses subs according to education and experience, so my wife(masters degree) always got a call probably 80% of the time. Now so many have been let go that she had to give up on it and is now retraining. We are hoping that one or the other will pan out, but I have a bad feeling by the time she is done retraining that field may have a surplus of workers as well...
I wouldn't be leaving good jobs for greener pastures right now if I were you, it's going downhill everywhere.

At heart, I have a relative in spec. ed, she always has work but the pay isn't great. They got into their home before the housing run up which is the only reason it works for her.