[jimboski93]

I live in NYC with my g/f. We are planning to move out of the city in two months.

My g/f is an elementary teacher in Brooklyn (near JFK) and is applying for jobs in Westchester and Fairfield counties. We likely won't know where she will be working before we have to move out. Worst case is that she has to commute from Stamford or White Plains to Brooklyn.

So, for anyone that has an opinion:

1) Stamford or White Plains?
2) Do many people walk from downtown to the Metro North or is there a bus you can take?
3) How bad is the commute from Stamford (to NYC or to Brooklyn specifically)?
4) Anyone want to help my g/f land a job at a different school?

[lgorfain]

WP is ten minutes closer to Manhattan. Both cities offer public transportation to depot, and have apts. within walking distance.

Stamford has better array of restaurants, club scene, theater and parks (two beaches) and is an Amtrak stop with access to the NE corridor from DC to Boston.

Both represent horrendous commutes to Brooklyn. Are you crazeeeee?

As alternative you might want to look at Forest Hills or Kew Gardens in Queens.

[7 Wishes]

You should look at Queens or LI unless your job is in Westchester or Fairfield. Besides the traffic and bridge tolls, your g/f should think a bit before leaving that job. Consider the following:

1) To teach public school in Fairfield County (I'm assuming she teaches in a public, not a private school), she will need to change her NY teaching license to a CT one. I've heard that unlike getting it as a first license (which I got last summer, for middle school math, I am only working p/t right now), switching it is a long process. Of course, to teach in Westchester, you would not need to change your license if she already teaches in Brooklyn.

2) Right now school districts are mostly facing lower budgets. Historically, elementary school teaching was already one of the most difficult teaching jobs to get, with normally dozens of applicants per open position. And when you hear about all those teacher layoffs out there, the first classroom teachers to get laid off are usually elementary school. There are stories of people subbing, etc. for years before getting an elementary school teaching job. It will be a little easier to get a teaching job in "urban" districts such as Yonkers, Mt. Vernon, Peekskill, Stamford, Norwalk, Bridgeport, and maybe Danbury; and granted, teaching in Brooklyn will look good towards getting a job in those places. All the other districts are among the most sought-after in America (and especially in Westchester, amongst the highest salaries in America), so competition is fierce and keen. In Westchester, there are long-experienced (i.e. 20 years, etc.) KINDERGARTEN teachers making $100K (there's a state website where you can look up salaries of individual teachers) for example with juicy benefits.

Just my thoughts, lots of luck to you!

[Stratford, Ct. Resident]

Originally Posted by 7 Wishes

It will be a little easier to get a teaching job in "urban" districts such as Yonkers, Mt. Vernon, Peekskill, Stamford, Norwalk, Bridgeport, and maybe Danbury; and granted, teaching in Brooklyn will look good towards getting a job in those places.

Keep in mind that in CT it has typically been the easiest to obtain a position in a larger inner city, but that is probably going to come to an end soon. Many cities such as Bridgeport, New Haven, and Hartford receive the bulk of their BOE funding from the state through the ECS program. In light of the state's budgetary woes, i don't foresee how the state can continue to blindly hand over increasing amounts of funding to these municipalities.

When the NCLB mandates were implemented, the state's response was to keep throwing more money to the city schools. The return on the $$$$ investment has been mediocre, to put it nicely. Slashing the excessive funding won't derail their systems because frankly, they never did get their systems on track to begin with.