Teachers, look at this salary schedule in CA!

I recently happened across the following salary schedule as I always look to see what teachers in CA are making and I am shocked. Apparently, in Mountain View Los Altos High School District teachers are paid in the six-figure range and I am simply astounished by this. See for yourself:

http://www.mvla.net/District/Department/125-Personnel-Services-Employment/1709-Salary-Schedules.html

Click the link and then click “Teacher”.

I am strongly considering moving here and it would be very doable for me.

Teachers, I think if any of you are planning on moving to California or if you already live in Cali and are considering a district change, you might want to consider applying at MVLA High School District. Wow!

 

Holy crap. I thought my pay was decent, but this is next level right here. Teachers at the end of the BA 60 and BA 75 column are making close to what most administrators (other than superintendents) make around here. Interestingly, the superintendents there make slightly less than here.

 

Wow, what's the catch?! I've heard of the city, but had no idea where it is, so I looked it up. I'm about 6 - 6.5 hours away & I live in California already.

 

I know, right?! I can’t figure it out.

 

Are you thinking about moving there?

Location: https://www.google.com/maps?q=mount...ved=0ahUKEwjgla3o1OneAhVEIDQIHT-RBkEQ_AUIEigB

 

Yes, the salary schedule looks appealing. Here’s an important question I’d like to pose: have y’all taken into account the cost of living in that part of CA? I have family in that area—well educated individuals (both RNs) and they can’t afford to purchase a home. I wouldn’t consider moving there for a second!

The builder I am going with (for my home purchase) is selling in that area. My same home (identical floor plan) is going for $1,849,880 in Mountain View. I got mine for under 330k.

I am 2 short hours away from Mountain View.

 

I figured as much, but I have figured out a workaround. I could commute there as I live roughly close to there (less than 2 hours away). That way, housing would not be an issue for me as I would continue to live in my current residence. What’s more, I already drive 1.5 hours most days after school as I private tutor, so it would be similar to my daily routine.

I make about 110k-120k right now from my teaching salary (69k) and my tutoring money (40k-50k) combined, so if I made 110k from teaching and 40k from tutoring I would be making 150k minimally, which is terrific. And that figure would quickly rise to the 200k range after a few years.

I don’t think administration is necessary for me anymore. I think I’ll eventually change jobs to there. I can’t wait!

 

I don’t know why, but for some reason, I thought you were in SoCal.

Don’t you want to get out of living in an apartment and purchase a home?

 

I do want to buy a home, but I will in my area where prices are in the 450k-600k range. I could easily afford those prices with the aforementioned salary (please see updated post). I already have 63k saved up, so I have a sizable down payment. I just have been waiting because I want to buy a home outright, but I don’t think that’s the best decision to make anymore.

Also, I currently rent a two-story home, not an apartment.

 

Yeah, you might be waiting many, many more years if you want to make a cash purchase.

I’m just not a commuter. I can’t imagine driving a lengthy distance to work. My current home is only 5 minutes away from school. My new home will be 10 minutes away. I supposed I’ll get used to it. Sigh.

 

Hahaha!

 

You have been telling us for a long time how much you love your present job, how much they love you, and how you are going to stay at your school long term because they give you everything you ask for. You do realize that your negotiating power is gone if you go to a public school?

 

I must admit that I, too, was completely shocked by his sudden change of life plans. He said he was going to become a VP at his current school because of the high pay, but now he “can’t wait” to move to the MVLA district. Interesting.

 

The cost of living in that area is insane so while that is a very high salary scale, it's really not as high as it would seem. Renting a townhouse or house would easily be $3,000 to $6,000 a month. Buying something would be at least $1.5 million, more likely $2-$3 million. Going north towards Redwood City could be a tad less but not much. Can't speak for going south of this area as I'm not familiar with it, but I suspect you'd have to go a decent amount south for it to go down by a lot. So yes, a much higher salary schedule than what I have at my school, but our hosing/rental costs are less than half of that.

 

I still can’t believe that my modest home is being built in Mountain View for a price tag of over 1.8 million and I got the same home here in the Central Valley for $330,000.

No, thanks. I’ll stay riiiiiight where I am!

 

Yup - it's crazy high to buy (or rent) in that area for sure! It's a very nice area though for sure. I loved the three years I spent there, but the cost of living is nuts. You'd need two people making in the six figures to be able to buy something, and even then a big chunk of your salary would be going towards your mortgage. Which is why as much as I liked living in that area, there's no way we'd move back unless I hit the lottery LOL!

 

But

But if your commute home each afternoon is 1.5 hours to 2 hours, wouldn't that cut into your tutoring time?

Driving 3 to 4 hours a day on top of a full-time job would be too much for me.

Teaching is stressful but you seem to be well-adapted to your current environment. If you make a switch like this, be aware that there will be many different stressors to which you'll have to adapt, different teaching expectations, different expectations from parents. I might have you mixed up with someone else, but I think you are the poster who reuses old lesson plans pretty much identically from year-to-year? If you switch schools, I'd expect you to have to revamp your lesson plans to align with different standards and pacing.

 

I just caution you to realize that a new school, especially a jump from private to public, can be a huge change. Although your job title might be the same, the job itself could be very different.

 

You’ve raised some valid points that I would like to address. First, MVLA district is an hour farther than I current drive to work, which is not too bad. Second, I largely tutor in that area anyway and the surrounding schools after work so my total commute time would be about the same since I drive there after school pretty much every day.

 

1) I do LOVE my present job, but I also said if I ever find greener pastures that I would move on. The advantages would have to outweigh the disadvantages.

2) I know many public schoolteachers who negotiated their steps on the salary schedule when they moved to another school because their field was in high demand. I could asked to be placed higher on the salary schedule, but I wouldn’t be able to be negotiate after I’m hired and my contract is finalized pretty much. And the salary would more than make up for the loss of my negotiating power thereafter.

3) Money is my primary motivating factor. I will always follow where the money is. At my current school, my salary schedule will max out at 100k. I want to make much more than that every single year that I work, not including tutoring.

 

One more thought: before uprooting your life based on a job and tutoring income, make sure the district allows side tutoring. My district doesn't allow me to tutor for a fee students who attend my school. So look into that or any restrictions on tutoring district students.

 

I attended public schools my entire life and I know what to expect. It will not be too much of a shocker. I can adapt so long as the pay is good — trust me on this one, lol!

 

Thank you! I didn’t consider this. I’d be willing to give up some of my tutoring clients since I would make a ton more anyhow without it or at least less of it.

 

I mean that what is expected of you as a teacher could be very different. I have worked at two different schools in the same district and expectations were very different.
But good luck, however it works out.

 

This! Parents in my area have to rely on college students because teachers can’t tutor students in our district for a fee.

 

This is why I plan to stay where I am currently living to commute to work. I pay $550/month at the moment to rent a two-story house. A lot of my friends commute to the Bay Area to work (1.5-2 hour commute just to get to work). A lot of people do this to have cheaper housing outside of the city. And as aforementioned, I have 63k saved up for a down payment, which I can easily use to purchase a 450k home in my area. That still would be affordable to me because my bills total like $1,000/month (I cut down my previous amount because I paid off my car several months ago). I would then pay that off within 7-8 years.

Worst case scenario: Let’s say I do decide to move to the area. I still could afford it because $3,000 a month is not that much higher than my current bills. I would make ~$150k after taxes (teaching plus tutoring clients not in the area), minus $36,000/year, and I still have $114,000 to live off of. Very doable since I’m not ever going to get married or have a family as I prefer the single life.

I don’t see how people can’t afford to live off of $114k after all their housing costs are paid for. Case in point, I have a friend who lives in New York and makes ~$150k after taxes and I showed her how she still had six figures of income after paying all of her bills. Well, she no longer complains about paying a lot for housing there anymore because she still can live very comfortably.

 

Understood. I can adapt still, though. I am the type of person that will be happy so long as they receive a beefy paycheck.

 

How will you answer the interview question "if you are happy at your current job, why do you want to work here?"

 

I will say something along the lines of, “Though I am happy at my current place of employment, I feel that MVLA would be a better fit in that I would have more room for growth and would be able interact with a much broader audience. And though my current school is very academically strong, MVLA is also rated one of the top public school districts in CA and so I would welcome the opportunity to work with other exemplary educators. Furthermore, I was drawn by your mission statement, as it coincides exactly with my teaching philosophy, and to your district’s like-minded pursuit of academic excellence. In short, I feel that I would make a positive contribution to your school and would be able to bring a lot to the table as I am extremely knowledgeable about maths and the sciences.”

I would then show my extensive resume, plus else.

Something like that.

 

Have you seen any openings on EdJoin? I wonder if there will be any math vacancies for the upcoming year. Would you be willing to teach middle school math? Sometimes, those are harder to fill than high school math positions.

 

Hmm, I didn’t know that about middle school math vacancies! In your professional opinion, why do you think that is? I ask because I thought there were more multiple-subject credentials that are typically issued year to year than single-subject ones? Am I mistake about that?

 

Here in my district, middle school math and science teachers all have single subject credentials. English/Language Arts and Social Studies teachers have multiple subjects credentials because they have students in 2 period blocks of time. ELA/SS positions are easy to fill because they require a multiple subjects credential (that’s how I got away with teaching middle school for 1 year). Most people with a subject subject math or science credential don’t like middle school because they typically teach the same exact thing 6-7 times in a row (zero variety in courses). At the high school level, they can teach a myriad of courses.

 

Thank you! This is helpful.

 

Another thing to think about....

You seem set in your own ways, and you have found what works well for you. That's great! As a first year teacher in a public school, it is quite likely you will be asked to co-teach at least 1 special education (ICS) class, and quite possibly more.I co-taught with a special education teacher my first 4 years of teaching. Are you prepared to share your classroom with a special education teacher? Also, many high performing districts require common assessments, and for teachers to follow the same schedule of lessons. You may have a hard time convinving a veteran teacher of the district that your way is best.

 

I think it would be an eye-opening and (hopefully) humbling experience for him. He’d really have to roll with the punches and get out of his comfort zone.

 

I have no qualms giving common assessments and working alongside another teacher or working with a special education teacher. It actually would be less work for me because I’m a class advisor, I’m in charge of two school clubs that meet multiple times a week, I tutor every single day during my lunch hour and after school before I drive 1.5 hours to private tutor for 2-3 hours, and I have numerous other adjunct duties that I must perform on top of what I already do. Not to mention, I grade test and quizzes the same day they are received and enter them into the gradebook without fail. I’m used to constantly working. Again, working diligently doesn’t bother me.

I’m the type of person that can adapt and learn very quickly. I’ve always been a quick learner and have an exceptional memory. I can work with another teacher in the classroom if need be because they would be able to help students with special needs that I might not be able to. I welcome their help because all students have a right to learn and to succeed.

 

If your goal is only about money are there not far better ways to make way more money than teaching in California?

I don't think money is a good reason to change schools.

I really do think that a public school is going to be a shock. So often FMP you've said things that come off to me as really not understanding what a public school is like and how the parameters are different from your experience. Frankly, your posts read to me as "I'm better than you" when really in my opinion, it's just that your context is totally different from mine.

I think if you are in a place that you are happy and works for you I would think long and hard about leaving. If you are set on it, I would go volunteer some time in a public school in a classroom of a new teacher (not the department heads) to see what teaching in this system is like compared to your current role.

 

I’ve explained this before. I teach because I enjoy doing it and because of all the time off I get. I’ve stated this time and time again. Yes, my friends who work in the private sector “make more” than I do, but they get 2 weeks off in vacation per year. I get 3 months, so proportionally I make the same if not more than they do.

I’m not better than you. I never implied that. You could very well be a better teacher than me.

That aside, I am willing to do whatever it takes to “make it” in public schools. I’m serious about making a positive impact on student’s lives and that is partly why I do what I do. Finally, I have no problem doing *whatever* an administrator asks of me, so long as its legal. I don’t complain about doing tedious things because I do them every day on the job already, like submitting very detailed lesson plans (gasp), answering emails that are sent to everyone (gasp), and responding to parent emails at home (gasp), plus else.

I’ve been called a robot by my colleagues because I will work consecutive 12-14 hour days with no issue. Again, working long hours doesn’t bother me as long as there is money waiting for me at the end of it. We all have different motivators in life. Mine just happens to be money. Yours might be different, and that’s okay, but my motivation is not bad just because it’s materialistic in nature.

 

So vacation time is important to you but you are okay with working 12-14 hr days as long as you make lots of money. That seems contradictory. Extending that wouldn't that mean that working an extra month is worth it if there is lots of money at the end of it? I just don't understand why anyone who is primarily motivated by money would stay in education over all the other options that exist in the world.

 

In terms of a school district, it looks like it has some challenges: https://www.glassdoor.ca/Reviews/Mo...nion-High-School-District-Reviews-E212014.htm