Quote Originally Posted by DetroitTeacher View Post
HA, we don't get paid for ANY vacations...Christmas, Easter, Spring, Summer...nada. If we don't work [[and it's not a scheduled work day) we don't get paid. I take less in my paycheck through the school year so that I can get a check during the summer months. Some [[most?) larger companies offer paid vacations. Teachers don't get that luxury.
Right! Another part of it that non-educators don't know is that before Spread the Pay, we used to get those 1-week checks before Christmas, Winter Break, and Easter/Spring Break. As a new teacher in my very early 20s, I didn't know what the hell was going on. It took DPS until November to start paying me, and then, once I started getting regular pay, I'm on half salary the week before Christmas. LOL!

My corporate friends sniffed, "Well, you should have saved for it." After 22 years of making zero to chicken change, saving enough each summer to take care of school fees and incidentals, I had to live off credit cards from September-early November, spend the next 3 paychecks trying to triage all the bills, and then it's Merry Christmas, and by the way, the 1st of the month bills are due January 1. What savings? My mom was a new widow, my siblings were still schoolkids, and I was the eldest in the family. I also was the young drama teacher and had the bright idea of putting on a holiday musical that year... and guess who had to supplement the $50 per year budget? Fun times!

It was then that I realized most people don't know what they're talking about when it comes to teachers and teaching. At all.

English: We are funding the Summer Senior Academy through a grant we wrote. This is not part of regular summer school. I don't know how they are really funding summer school because DPS really doesn't have any cash on hand [[oh, I forgot...they have 10 grand from each teacher).
LOL! You guys are on the side of the angels, seriously. All the best this summer. I know the kids will have a memorable experience.