I just spent a half an hour translating $30,000 Los
Angeles, California dollars to an equivalent value for
various top cities in the states from Alabama through
Kentucky, and then I promptly lost the note.

I will paraphrase my research, and then you're welcome
to run the figures for yourself for your area at

http://www.homefair.com/homefair/calc/salcalc.html?NETSCAPE_LIVEWIRE.src=homefair

Basically, as I recall from the work I just did and
lost, $30,000 in Los Angeles, using only capital
cities in these other states, draws an equivalent
value of as low as $18,000 to as high as $36,000
(Hawaii, Washington DC and Chicago, Illinois all came
in higher--as I think so too did Alaska.

It's just ridiculous to compare teacher salaries
unless you validate that against the standard of
living.

Now, since you so strongly believe that teachers
should be paid more, when will you be sending your
extra dollars to take care of them?  I take it you'll
forgo any tax cuts that may be in the works and tell
them to please not pay you as much because you'd
rather have your funds go to the teachers.

Things aren't as they SHOULD BE, the are as they are!
If you really think people are going to freewill pay
teachers more you're not paying attention to the
economy at all.

With so many people losing their jobs, teachers are
damned  lucky to have a job at all.  It may not be a
fair wage, but it's a market wage, and some part of
that market wage is driven by the fact that the market
for teachers was glutted.  As it is with the museum
world, there are more candidates for a job as a
teacher than there are jobs to fill them.

Now, with that said, can I ask anybody here what in
the hell this teacher talk has to do with museums?
Shouldn't we be getting back on target instead of
lamenting the fact that things that should be
important to society just quite simply are not to a
majority.

Deb indicated that schools are funded by property
taxes.  Take California as an offset to that.  Back in
1979, California passed Prop 13, locking in property
taxes on homes.  What do you suppose THAT did to the
school system?  Understand that I voted against Prop
13 and am still against it just for the reasons some
of you are railing about.  Teachers should be paid a
decent wage in exchange for the hours they put in and
the education they are required to secure.

The next time you pity the poor school teacher of
today, think of the one of yore.  In California,
though now possibly subject to change because our
budget is in such dire condition as are the budgets of
so many states, the younger grades have a 20-1 teacher
ratio.  The old school marm had no such guarantees, no
such benefits, and had to teach all the grades in one
classroom!

Now all of you who want to help the teachers can mail
your checks to me, so that I can tally the good
intentions of this group, and I'll be happy to pass
them on with your best wishes to the American
Federation of Teachers.

Is it a deal?




--- Merri Pemberton <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> Teachers in some parts of this country don't even
> get in $30,000 range. There are extra benefits that
> are being offered to teachers to make up for the
> lack of pay. What we are missing is that even though
> teachers do technically have vacations similar to
> what the children have, their job is a heck of a lot
> more important than most jobs, considering we are
> relying on our children to become good citizens and
> leaders...plus their job is more dangerous
> considering the state of our society today. How many
> times have we heard the statement that our schools
> used to be one of the safest place, but not any
> more. When I was in high school in the early 90's,
> which was located in a small town...we had drug dogs
> sniff through our lockers because someone snuck
> drugs on the premises...there were other incidents
> as well which could have caused significant harm to
> the students and faculty. Now you have students
> willing to do much more harm to others. As a museum
> professional,  one does not have to deal with the
> serious issues facing students today...not on the
> same level. We don't have to face disciplining a
> student for making serious threats and sometimes
> carrying it out. Next to my faith, and my parents,
> teachers have been the most valuable resource for my
> upbringing...more than any museum professional. No
> one can replace my childhood teachers who believe in
> their students. Yes they should get paid well for
> their level of work and accomplishments...yes, they
> deserve my tax dollars, I would rather pay more
> money to a teacher who could help a child find their
> worth and do something good with their lives, than
> to pay for extra prisons and the prisoners who don't
> know what living a good life is about.
>
> Sincerely,
>
> Christi Pemberton
>


=====
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