Endless Side-hustle

Being an educator is not the most lucrative career choice. I mention this on the cusp of receiving my third stimulus payment as a result of America's latest COVID relief. I also just got my taxes done and expect a little more $ in my pocket, which will come in handy now that restrictions are lifting and travel plans are underway. I've worked hard to get salary raises that I feel are comparable to my value, and this allows me and my partner to do a lot of fun shit. That got me thinking of all the fun jobs I've had since college so that I could enjoy the summertime perks of teacher life. Here are just a few.

For three weeks one summer I worked second shift at a metalworks plant in Napoleon, Ohio, putting little parts into a lathe. This helped me pay off a trip to the Pacific Northwest and buy my first personal computer.

I spent another summer working at Transglobal in Upper Sandusky, Ohio (I had an in with family 😀) putting rivets into roll up truck doors. I think that was just to keep myself out of trouble.

For five years straight I spent June and July stocking and selling fireworks at Red Rocket Fireworks in Fort Mill, South Carolina. This helped me pay for a ten-day trip to Vietnam and Hawaii to visit my sister. 

Each summer since 2011 I graded AP Psychology free-response questions for College Board. This in itself was a summer trip because I got to go to Kansas City, Louisville, and Tampa Bay and have fun after grading hours. I've also made great friends that have helped me out in my teaching.

All of this is not including the 18 years that I spent coaching girls sports, which is really like working a full-time job on top of a full-time job.

I've reached a point in my career where I can say no to summertime gigs. This makes me happy and sad simultaneously. Happy because my efforts can now go into my Teachers Pay Teachers store (wait, what?) and making videos. Happy because I can use my summer for the things it is meant for, like designing content and taking classes. Most importantly, I can visit with friends and family, and that's what really matters.

I am sad for the teachers just starting out, making base pay and constantly looking for that side-hustle. An entry-level teacher in my district makes $40,000 a year. The only thing that gets a teacher a higher salary is experience and additional degrees. The entry-level teacher could be the teacher of the year and still be at base pay. This would warrant side-hustle opportunities, but the side-hustle would still be present.

There's been a lot of talk in the post COVID world of the salaries not keeping pace with other fields and leaving many of the teachers I work with relying on alternate streams of income, especially now that parents and community members have seen the challenges that our profession faces. We frequently have to work second and third jobs. That's just what we do to get by.

When I entered teaching I knew full well I would not be making six figures, but I did have an expectation of being able to support myself. Alone. On one salary. In today's world I would struggle to pay my house payment on $40,000 a year.

Not having to work in the summer HAS improved my teaching. I HAVE used this time to learn and improve. I can pay my bills on one salary and have some left to run a race or two. I am not sure that an entry year teacher can make the same claims, and that makes me sad for them.

It's taken me twenty-three years, but the side-hustles are over. Now, whatever summer jobs I work, I have a choice. I hope that one day new teachers can afford to say no so that they can also learn, improve, and most importantly, spend time with friends and family.