[mlh1981]

I am a 25 year old male and recent completed my academic coursework at Ohio University with a degree in Early Childhood Education. I have lived in the midwest my whole live and am tired of it. Vegas schools said that they would hire me. What are the schools out there like? What are some of the better ones out there? Would I be able to afford to live out there? Also, I would be moving by myself, so where are some good places to go to meet like-minded people? Thanks for the help

[olecapt]

Las Vegas teacher salaries are low. Many use a room mate to keep the housing cost under control. Gets better after a couple of years. Not our finest moment.

Then again you do end up in Las Vegas...which is not a bad place to be young.

The schools go like most everywhere. Check the demographics for the zip code...and the free lunches on the school achievement report. High income and low free lunches will mostly lead to the better schools.

Unless you are into challenges...then you go the other way...

[RedWingsFan]

I agree with what olecapt said about checking the info on the schools. And you won't be able to afford a home on a teacher salary just starting out. But you can probably find a cheaper apartment to rent. You can also look into a roommate situation. You'll have fun being in Vegas at your age. You have nothing to lose and can always go back to your home state. Go for it! The city needs teachers badly.

[Buzz123]

I think we are short something like 500 teachers right now. I don't know if they are doing this yet but they were talking about helping new teachers buy a home to get started. My daughter is a teacher in the Clark County School District and she makes pretty good money. It helped a lot when she got her masters, and she's been with the district for a long time. I really don't know all the particulars but she is very happy with her job. Of course it helps that she is at one of the top schools in the district. I don't know that you get to choose your school though. I think you go where they need you. I have a friend who was a librarian and she ended up at some really bad schools and hated it, but when she was at a good school she was happy. My daughter had to work at one of the Special Ed schools as her first assignment and it was terrible for her. We have other firiends who teach at different high schools and they are generally happy with their jobs. I think overall it is a good experience for most teachers here. As far as pay, my guess is it's better than a lot of places...like Athens, Ohio for instance. So if you get the right school you'll love it, and if not you'll hate it; but you won't be stuck at a bad school forever. The time off and the benefits really make teaching worth while. Oh yes, in the grades we do have several, but not all, year round schools. They don't get three months off in summer, they have track breaks which I believe come every six weeks, so it adds up to the same amount of free time. You asked if there are places to go? This is Vegas, man; there is everything to do. Plus Vegas is central to all the best stuff in the west with easy access. I know this isn't very specific, so if you are interested in hearing from a local teacher I might be able to arrange it if they are willing, but I would need your email address, or some way for them to reach you. BTW: Are you from Athens or just went to school there? You asked what the schools are like? To give you a little perspective, we probably build more new schools each year than there are all schools in Athens and Parkersburg combined.

[Rachael84]

I plan on moving there as well in about 3 years. I'll be teaching in NYC starting next year, then heading over to Las Vegas.

Here's a good site to get information. You can ask people on this message board for advice. They're very nice and helpful. They've helped me a lot:

http://teachers.net/states/nv/