[Stormcrow73]

Originally Posted by Sam I Am

Me, too - Storm, you forgot the most important part...undertheironsea is sensitive...

How can a soccer fan who grew up in rural MS and now lives in Russellville be all THAT sensitive?? I'd think it takes a pretty thick skin to be a soccer fan in some of those situations.

More to the topic, I looked at starting pay for teachers in AR a couple of years ago and I did see that NWA was considerably higher than the rest of the state except for LR. I don't have a link or a precise figure though.

[Yankee BBQ Boy]

Originally Posted by marmac

is there a link that states starting teachers make $43,000 in NWA?

In St Cloud MN-------higher cost of living and higher wages across the board------starting teachers make about $31,000.

Is that --$43,000 -- wage for starting teachers in NWA accurate ?

A starting teacher with a Bachelor's will start at around $45,00 at the high school level in the western burbs of Chicago. Of course, we have a much higher cost of living than in Arkansas.

[marmac]

wages in Chicago to wages in Alabana is apples to oranges

[undertheironsea]

Originally Posted by Sam I Am

Me, too - Storm, you forgot the most important part...undertheironsea is sensitive...

Only slightly.

Only slightly.

[Yankee BBQ Boy]

Originally Posted by marmac

wages in Chicago to wages in Alabana is apples to oranges

To a certain extent - according to the retirement indexes that I have seen, Chicago has about a 20% cost of living difference from Arkansas. Now if you are making 40-50% more as a teacher in Chicago than in Arkansas, you will have more buying power.

Another factor that should be considered when looking at teaching salaries is the top end of the salary schedule. I know some districts that will have high starting salaries but limit the amount that you will make at the top end of the scale. Schools, in my experience, that don't compensate experienced teachers well have a tendency to have younger staffs who get their experience at these districts but then leave for more lucrative employment (and take their experience with them).

This, of course, applies to primarily urban and suburban school systems - rural areas will be different.

[kirbyjack]

Originally Posted by marmac

Is that --$43,000 -- wage for starting teachers in NWA accurate ?

Yes this is par for NWA in the big 4 (4 of the largest school districts in Arkansas). Our population is growing so fast that we can't keep up. More and more new schools are opening each year. Education is really important in our area, and pay scales have increased 10-15k in the last 8 years or so. Private schools and smaller towns will have a starting rate slightly smaller, but the big 4 compete for premium teachers.