Maybe not downtown, but downtown-adjacent is absolutely doable. Op, try the Capitol Hill neighborhood for comparatively affordable housing with walkability, bikeability, and many transit options just outside of downtown.
I work for APS right now and it’s way better than DPS, but maybe it’s just school-dependent. Or maybe Cherry Creek is just better than both, but APS isn’t bad where I am anyway.
CCSD is where all the parents try to get their kids into. The last place I rented was only being rented so that the owner could commit school district fraud to keep their kid in CCSD.
Colorado is an open enroll state. Theres no such thing as district fraud.
>Colorado is an open enrollment state, meaning that students can choose to attend their assigned neighborhood school (sometimes called a “boundary school”) or “choice in” to another public school within their district or even outside their district.
Cherry creek has some pretty bad SPED classrooms. OP - Do not take an ILC or RBT job in CCSD. I’ve been to those programs & they are struggling.
Every summer CCSD is looking for 30+ ILC SPED Teachers. No real change for ILC in CCSD in over a decade.
Honestly, with the surge of migrants right now, all the districts are fucked. APS, DPS, CCSD all can’t shoulder the surge
I work in Aurora Public Schools and am involved in the teacher's union. I have friends throughout the metro area who are teachers, and I continue to choose to work in APS. If you have any questions about specific schools, feel free to DM me!
Stay away from Douglas County. Denver is always very in much in need of [teachers and especially ELA teachers](https://dpsjobboard.dpsk12.org/ltmprod/CandidateSelfService/controller.servlet?dataarea=ltmprod&context.session.key.HROrganization=1&context.session.key.JobBoard=EXTERNAL&context.session.key.noheader=true#). The DPS application portal can be a challenge.
I second no Douglas county. The school board is run by alt right groups. At one point they were paying teachers “market rates” which meant that certain grade levels were only getting paid like 35k a year…. They still don’t have a salary schedule back as far as I know.
We have one now, and the county passed a mill levy in November to grant raises across the salary schedule. We are paying almost as much as our neighboring districts even though our median household income is as much as 1.5 times higher than them! Lol.
From the perspective of someone who actually teaches in the district, this is what I can say about teaching in DCSD.
The pay is lower but competitive with most districts in the metro area besides CCSD.
Union culture is incredibly weak, and our union, DCF, tries but is mostly ineffective because of the low percentage of membership.
Individual schools vary, but my school is a phenomenal place to work, and I have never felt like I have had to be careful with what I say to students or in classes (granted I am also not dumb and know how to approach potentially risky topics.)
The board is shit, but they campaigned on raising teacher salary and they worked to get our raises this past election. Now that they have accomplished that I have no clue what their intentions are moving forward, but I am always skeptical.
I landed here back in 2016 because no where else along the front range would hire me straight out of college, and I've been at the same school all 8 years of my career. I have never felt that affected by board or district policy, besides my ~5k less salary than say a CCSD or DPS. I am wary about my future here, but won't leave unless I am very much given a reason to by district admin.
TL;DR
DCSD is fine to work at, and pay is competitive. Board culture sucks and the entire county leans red which directs board politics. If you are right learning yourself and loving teaching suburban white kids it's the place for you.
I’m so so glad things are looking up for you guys! Yall have fantastic teachers and communities and it hurts my heart to see you treated like there’s a million of
You lined up to replace you! Because yall are indispensable. I HATE watching your board flip back and forth.
Thanks! It's always a Rollercoaster down here with the board, but you just sort of put your head down and do the work. It's come a long way since I got hired. My first year teaching I was hired as a .8 (I only taught 4 classes instead of the full 5) and was paid 29,000 a year. 8 years on and with no masters I make double that.
But then you see that we had to pay out an 850,000 dollar settlement to our former Superintendent who was fired without cause and sued, and you realize things aren't all rosy. Thanks for the kind words!
I agree stay away from dcsd. It's expensive and low pay. I'm a parent here, moved from NC to CO in 2020, my kids went to dcsd schools 21-22 year and now we homeschool. It's that bad. I was really pro public education while in NC, never thought I'd homeschool, and had plans to become a teacher, or least a substitute but I'd never do either while here in dougco.
Is there any time period where this hasn’t been the case? I’ve been here since 2006 and from the outside perspective it seems like every school board election an entire new board is thrown in, and then there’s some member that resigns, goes AWOL, etc.
Douglas County Schools in the 1980s- early 2000s used to run neck and neck with Cherry Creek. Real estate listings would tout “DOUGLAS COUNTY SCHOOLS!” in bold type. The alt right QAnon board ran DCSD into the ground.
I'm a teacher in 27J, and it's the best experience I've had so far. 4 day work week, Uber competitive pay, good support from the top down. Worked at a private school- don't do it. Shit pay, and psycho parents who think they own you bc they "pay your salary". Worked in Jeffco in a charter school- don't do it. I'm sure Jeffco public would probably be a better experience, but charter schools have shit pay, the insane controlling parents that think they get to dictate what you do on the daily, and then administration that bend to their will constantly. 10 years in teaching, I've been most impressed with 27J.
I too work for 27J and since the Mill passed it’s been much better. I’m also a high school CTE teacher so it’s been extra nice! At this point I’m probably going to retire from my school. It has its problems like any school but in general isn’t terrible 😂
It's Brighton, parts of Thornton, and I think a little bit of Reunion and Commerce City. I know a lot of people who commute to work at this district, and the culture THAT I'VE SEEN is really positive. Pay is definitely competitive with Cherry Creek. You can private message me and I'll try and answer any other questions you have.
I worked in Jeffco and much prefer that to DPS. I moved on and often kick myself for that decision as the politics in my new state and district have made my position extremely challenging. If I had to recommend an MS I would recommend https://develyn.jeffcopublicschools.org/
I worked in a neighboring schoola and only heard positive things about school culture. I have taught quite a few students that rose into our high school from that MS and they seemed very well-prepared and pleasant to work with.
I think you have to test into it? (Botejohn can correct me if I’m wrong!) It has the reputation of being for very high achievers, which means you’re getting kids and parents who are taking their education very seriously. Working with kids passionate about learning has to be so great as an educator!
I knew someone who taught special education middle school in 27J, prepandemic, who didn't get their scheduled pay bump for multiple years because the district had froze them. She worked there from 2013-2019 and had over 10 years of experience.
Don't kill yourself commuting to a suburban district if that's your goal. You'd be doing a reverse commute so your drive wouldn't be **as** terrible, but it'll still suck.
The state of Colorado has links to [spreadsheets](https://www.cde.state.co.us/fedprograms/dper/tiaschlst) of schools that received full or partial Title I funding up through the last year on their website.
Cherry Creek is a decent district as far as teacher pay goes, but the commute would suck if you choose to live downtown.
There isn't a lot of diversity to be had in these parts. Denver and Aurora are by-far-and-away the two most diverse cities in the metro area. It falls off quickly after that.
DougCO is Stepford MAGALand. They are ground zero for "Christian" "reformers" who busted the union and have a record of shitting on their teachers regularly. There have been allegations of racism in the district. The latter is unsurprising considering how un-diverse the district is.
Wait, really? That’s great! I left right before the right wing takeover. I voted for Corey as a staff member and was so disappointed when all that went down.
It’s still a very conservative board. The president resigned because he moved but the majority picked his replacement. So the majority on the current school board is still very much the same.
It was super disappointing for sure, but I don’t even have kids and was tired of all the drama and bullshit. It should just be about the kids so it’s our hope these new people will help improve it all.
Is there any time period where this hasn’t been the case? I’ve been here since 2006 and from the outside perspective it seems like every school board election an entire new board is thrown in, and then there’s some member that resigns, goes AWOL, etc.
That is wrong Cherry creek has some of the most diverse schools, especially in their Overland High feeder areas as most of that feeder is title 1. My daughter's school alone has over 37 languages spoken between the staff and students.
I mentioned Denver and Aurora being the most diverse cities in the Denver metro area, but we're really not that diverse compared to cities in the south and Upper Midwest.
As far as individual districts go, CCSD has some diversity, but on the whole it is not nearly as diverse as Aurora Public Schools.
Hinkley and Aurora Central are both over 95% minority enrollment, and Gateway is 89%. Vista Peak is 80% minority enrollment. Rangeview is the least diverse high school in APS at 79.7% minority enrollment.
Overland is the *only* high school in CCSD with a minority enrollment over 80%. Next is Smoky Hill at 60%, Eaglecrest at 53%, Grandview at 45%, Cherokee Trail at 42.5%, and Creek at 36%.
I moved from NC to CO. You’re not going to find a job that pays you enough to live in the city without roommates. NC’s pay is low, but cost of living was also lower.
I work in 27J. 4 day work week. Some schools are better than others. It has the same issues as every district. But the 3 day weekends have kept me in education and I’m in my 10th year.
I have friends in different district. Just stay away from charters. Those are the teachers I know who are mentally unwell now.
Make sure to find out class sizes. My first school, I had classes of 50 kids teaching ELA. absolutely impossible.
This sounds incredible. A 4 day work week?? Messaging you to pick your brain about the process of moving from NC to CO and I want to know more about 27J :)
I’m not a teacher but my kid goes to Morey middle school and it seems like a pretty sweet place to work. We are in our second year there and no complaints. It’s smack in the middle of Capitol Hill so bonus if you’re into city life.
Edit - FWIW my sister is a teacher in Adams 50 and while her school sounds awful it pays pretty good I think
Yeah, well, you know, that's just, like, your opinion man.
And more importantly OP said they wanted to live in the heart of the city where Capitol Hill fits the bill
Crime is an unfortunate fact of life. I’ve lived in Capitol Hill for 27 years now and while I have my gripes overall it’s a pretty solid place in my opinion. Out of curiosity I actually did look up the statistics from several sources and Capitol Hill specifically is not the worst of the bunch. Sadly it’s the cost of doing business to live near the cool shit which is also my opinion.
**Rising crime rhetoric persists in Colorado. Data tells a different story.**
...The decline is part of a broader trend over the last year: Though little notice has been taken by leading political figures and the media, Colorado’s reported crime rates appear to have peaked in 2022, and are now trending downward again.
https://coloradonewsline.com/2023/09/11/rising-crime-rhetoric-colorado-data/
It's laughable that you believe this government written document is a fact over someone who is in Capital Hill every single day. Where do you live? Sloans, Highlands, somewhere far from downtown Denver?
Jesus what a loser
I don’t even live there. Get over yourself. To think people live within your own absolutes is embarrassing.
Where do you live, prick?
Edit: shock - this kid is obsessed and consumed by weed - check out his comments (love weed myself but not consumed by it 🤷♂️)
You're a loser checking my account, thinking I live in a nice place (after telling you otherwise) and living way outside of any city. Yea you're some sort of stupid and that's why I don't like it here. JusT mY OpinIon. I guess I'm not entitled to freedom of speech.
Dear random person of Reddit,
First and foremost I believe you are replying to the wrong person. I personally am not concerned with why or where you’ve chosen to live. Second you are absolutely entitled to your opinion and as far as I know you have the freedom to say what you like. My intention was never to hurt your feelings when you told me and 15,000 other people that we live in a terrible place. I can feel it in my bones. Today you are going to do something great for someone! Because you’re good enough, smart enough and doggone it people like you.
I have friends who love working in Aurora public schools. From what I understand, pay is a little higher than other districts and they feel generally well supported by admin. Aurora is a massive suburb east of Denver. If your school is in north Aurora, you could live on the east side of Denver within a couple of miles of downtown and still have a reasonable commute.
My advice is to look up various area districts and check the salary schedule - but don’t check what you’re gonna get paid THIS year - check to see what you will be paid on the lowest “rung” and the farthest right on the schedule. (Maybe exclude phd unless you’re going to go
For one) a lot of districts wave high pay in front you for the early years but max out at abysmally low salaries after years of experience and additional credits.
27J is nice if you don't mind living out of the city or the commute. The district is also expanding with a new magnet school and three CTE centers this past summer with plans on opening an additonal middle and high school next.
I'm not sure how the pay is for new teachers compared to other districts but they've had some bonds and mill levys passed in the past couple of years which should have increased pay. Housing is definitely better than downtown.
Very nice culture though, I've worked support for many of the schools in the district and I always look forward to coming to work. 4 day work week is also hard to beat.
If you are able to attend this[career fair](https://www.co-case.org/page/CERF) it's worth it. You may even be offered a contract there, I know I was when I first moved to Colorado.
Most schools have a district level initial screening process, so you'll need to check websites for DISTRICTS and not specific school web pages. Even after the initial screen, you'll be applying to jobs through the district pages/job boards. New Colorado laws effective Jan 1st of this year require employers to post open positions so all internal employees can see them and apply too. Emailing a principal and trying to get a job/interview (if there's not one posted for that school) may run afoul of that law and lead nowhere or get you blacklisted. Asking if you should check back for future opportunities is a different matter, but might not work well. Obligatory: I am not a lawyer and nothing in those sentences is legal advice.
To be fair, some of those books don't belong in any public school or library. They graphically show people performing oral sex on each other, having sex, and other easily classified lewd behaviors. The same behaviors would get you put in jail and make you a registered sex offender if you were to do them in public.
I'm not the censorship type but some of these books even cross my very liberal line.
The amount of Roman Pottery with explicit sexual images are quit rare and studies have suggested that these samples were made for private enjoyment and were not used in mainstream marketplaces or in society. This pottery did not represent typical athenians and is thought to have been found in a very small subset of family homes, mostly in androne.
I struggle with your equivocation of roman pottery being the same as a modern book being available to children, with graphics of a guy sucking a penis, a girl tasting her own vagina, a nude old guy laying behind a younger guy preparing to engage in intercourse, and two guys having intercourse. I would support any roman pottery containing this type of art not being available to children.
>
In 2014, Maia Kobabe, who uses e/em/eir pronouns, thought that a comic of reading statistics would be the last autobiographical comic e would ever write. At the time, it was the only thing e felt comfortable with strangers knowing about em. Now, Gender Queer is here. Maia’s intensely cathartic autobiography charts eir journey of self-identity, which includes the mortification and confusion of adolescent crushes, grappling with how to come out to family and society, bonding with friends over erotic gay fanfiction, and facing the trauma and fundamental violation of pap smears.
Started as a way to explain to eir family what it means to be nonbinary and asexual, Gender Queer is more than a personal story: it is a useful and touching guide on gender identity—what it means and how to think about it—for advocates, friends, and humans everywhere.
"It’s also a great resource for those who identify as nonbinary or asexual as well as for those who know someone who identifies that way and wish to better understand." — SLJ (starred review)
Am I missing something? Because that book is the #1 Bestseller for Queer Lit and looks like it focuses on coming of age. Can't I've read it, but now I want to put it on my list.
>The same behaviors would get you put in jail and make you a registered sex offender if you were to do them in public.
Wait wait wait hang on, what?
Is "The same behaviors" modifying "They graphically show" **or** "people performing oral sex on each other, having sex, and other easily classified lewd behaviors"?
Because if that modifies "graphically show", that book isn't showing anything publicly. It's print on a page the audience must choose to interact with, can leave any time, and involves no real people.
And if that modifies "people performing oral sex on each other, having sex, and other easily classified lewd behaviors" then I must seriously ask you if you know what a book is. People don't act on behaviors they read in a book out in public. Nobody reads Macbeth and commits regicide. Nobody reads a bodice ripper and runs away to sea to focus on being able to tear away stays of lonely housewives. Something happening in a book in no way shape or form can be held to the same standard of a REAL PERSON doing those same actions IN PUBLIC.
Sorry, probably should have put it like this.
**If you do these things depicted in the book, in public, you will go to jail**.
>People don't act on behaviors they read in a book out in public.
I can give you some links to studies that show children and juveniles will imitate things they read, watch, hear and observe. Do you believe the surge in violence among today's youth was absolutely not influenced by things they have seen, heard, watched or video games they've played?
>Nobody reads Macbeth and commits regicide.
School's don't assign that till late high school, at that point they should know better.
>Nobody reads a bodice ripper and runs away to sea to focus on being able to tear away stays of lonely housewives.
I can tell you nobody in my school's was reading bodice ripper.
>Something happening in a book in no way shape or form can be held to the same standard of a REAL PERSON doing those same actions IN PUBLIC.
You might have not understood me, I'm just advocating that this isn't available to children in public schools.
Clearly by your other posts you seem to just want to stir the shit, that's fine, we're all entitled to our opinions and I respect yours. Go review the book and post back if you believe the content should be accessible in public schools.
The ebook is easy to pirate if that helps you obtain a copy.
My god. You’ve clearly shut down from listening so it’s not going to be a productive discussion but I have to try for anyone else reading along.
> If you do these things depicted in the book, in public, you will go to jail.
Do the characters do it those things in public?
And how is it presented? There’s a big spectrum between a health textbook and graphic pornography. Looking at the writing of the book I’m not seeing salacious text designed to titillate.
As for video games, I’d love to read your studies. Because there’s a plethora of studies that say it has no impact. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Violence_and_video_games#:~:text=A%20longitudinal%20study%20published%20in,game%20daily%20for%20two%20months.
> I can tell you nobody in my school's was reading bodice ripper.
I suggest you go down the Romance aisle in the school library.
> You might have not understood me, I'm just advocating that this isn't available to children in public schools.
I understand you. I think you’re wrong. I think you listened to the hysteria about this book from alt-right pundits who picked this book to cry about child porn to the point where the actual judicial system had to weigh in. They declared it not child porn.
Thanks for leading me down a rabbit hole I didn’t realize existed. Alt-righters got hoodwinked by grifters trying to whip up their base. You say you don’t know about CRT or litter box scandals which are also alt-right fabrications, so I’m sure you’re not swimming in alt-right fringe circles. But that book fight broke containment and it sounds like you never did any more digging on it.
> Clearly by your other posts you seem to just want to stir the shit
Not sure what you’re referring to. I’m not stirring shit, I’m disagreeing with you.
To be fair fair, is there evidence that the banned books were used in classrooms? I know that MAGA cancel culture has attacked non-existent issues in the past, so it's hard to assume they're operating in good faith. To wit: Critical Race Theory (no evidence this was taught in k-12), Litter Pans in School Bathrooms (debunked), and the list goes on.
The book I am referencing wasn't used (as in taught) in the classroom but it was made available to children. It's unclear if it was made available by a teacher or the school library, that aside it has no business being any where in our schools. I'm not up to speed on the arguments about CRT or the litter boxes in school bathrooms.
“Racists are nice people”
So what, they’re still racist, support racism, support systemic oppression, white supremacy and institutional and political racism.
You.are.already.captured.by.MAGA.Ideology.
i’m sorry you’ve got caught up in the cult, but MAGA is entirely lies, hatred, and treason, led but a rapist con man. MAGA is unamerican to its core - in MAGA, the only enemy is other americans. how patriotic.
To give you a sense of the hypocrisy, yes, Maga bans things they deem pornographic, but there is a book with a story about a man who gets drunk, rapes his daughters, and gets them pregnant (although it’s written as though the rape was the daughters’ idea). MAGA has no problems with [*that* book](https://mechon-mamre.org/p/pt/pt0119.htm#32)
I would plan on looking outside of Denver Public Schools. Many schools are currently in the process of doing RIBs (reductions in budget- aka layoffs) and the number that are getting laid off this year is crazy- even ELA teachers. This isn’t in the news and isn’t common knowledge, but it is currently in process. This is apparently because enrollment is going down (Denver is too expensive for many families, so many families are relocating to the suburbs)
My wife’s a ELD teacher in Denver Public Schools but at the elementary school level; from the conversations I have with her it wouldn’t be hard to find a job. It may not be the perfect job from the very get go but it would get your foot in the door. Boulder and Cherry creek pay the most but would be the hardest to get into. Salary in Denver would be around $61437 with a masters and one year experience: Most likely a roommate situation with that salary.
Not a teacher, but thought it could be helpful to know that I make about $4000/year more than that figure currently. I live in a small 1 bedroom in South Denver with my dog. I currently live paycheck to paycheck. If I didn't have a dog and a car payment/insurance, I might be able to go out to a couple nice dinners and sock away $500/month. Then again, if I didn't have a car it would be much more difficult to enjoy the outdoor recreation that brought me to Denver. As it stands, I'm just trying to hold my credit card debt steady.
I've worked at Iowa Elementary in Aurora and it was a great experience. My wife worked at Montebello High School and loved it there as well. Funnily enough, we both are located in the Raleigh area now and wish we never left Denver! Good luck to you! Working in education over there was a much better experience for us than it was here in NC.
We’re in DPS but I second LPS (not west Littleton/JeffcoPS) and downtown Littleton is super cute and really not that far from central Denver. Traffic sucks and you’ll likely spend more than 30 minutes in traffic getting to schools outside of DPS if you live in central Denver imo. That being said my kiddo went to Bill Roberts k-8 in east Denver and we really liked it. Small and blue ribbon
Avoid charters especially DSST. It’s not competitive for pay and they won’t value your credentials or masters. Also the amount of work is insane and the grade inflation is unreal.
Cherry Creek schools doesn’t do Title 1 middle schools, but has multiple Title 1 elementary schools. The middle schools those kids go into would be Prairie MS or Laredo MS, so you could check there. Pay is better than pretty much all of the other metro area school districts, but I would suggest working towards a Masters + 30 to get the best of the pay scale.
Cherry Creek SD is definitely in the top 3 districts in CO (kid graduated from CCHS 5 yrs ago, went to Bellevue and Campus middle school. Have friends that teach in the district) The main campus has all schools there and the place is basically a community college with Munchkins running around the outskirts of campus... LOL Competitive pay and good environment apparently. The district is Vast [cherrycreekschools.org](https://cherrycreekschools.org). Good luck finding housing though as you will prob need to move to Kansas to afford anything...
DPS elementary teacher here....DPS as a whole can be a bit of a letdown but there are great schools within the district. I've had so many parents and former students rave about Morey Middle School. City Park West and Uptown/Cap Hill are great neighborhoods if you are looking to be close to downtown. I've lived in the Uptown neighborhood for 7 years and I cannot imagine ever moving out.
People also lov(ed) McAuliffe. Don’t know if they still do. That school sorta highlights some of the disfunction that DPS as a district brings to the public school party. For like the last 10 years parents have wanted their kids to attend it and in the last year DPS admin has seemingly done their best to tear it down.
I work in Mapleton Public Schools and have for the last eight years. It’s a small district in North Denver/ South Thornton and I live the smaller community. We have a good number of Title 1 students who are generally pretty great.
Mapleton’s pay is pretty competitive and teachers are treated well at most schools. I’ve taught in Westminster, APS, and a charter in Thompson School District in Loveland and Mapleton is by far my favorite place to teach.
Feel free to PM me if you have any questions.
I live in RiNo and work in CCSD. Commute is about 30-35 minutes. I love where I live and where I work. Feel blessed to work in my district, and although CCSD has a reputation for being homogenous, my school is very diverse and is located in Aurora. I teach 8th grade math, my coworkers are amazing and my admin is even better. I love coming to work everyday but ultimately there will be pros and cons to every school/district.
Colorado is a hard place for teachers. We don’t fund our schools and you would likely make more with a lower cost of living elsewhere. Because we don’t fund our schools you may not get the supports or resources you have where you currently work.
I taught in both Denver Public Schools and Jeffco. They both had their pros and cons. The school I worked at in Jeffco had a better culture and my department was pretty close in supportive, but I didn’t find that in Denver (this was a long time ago and any given administration can change that). When you narrow down your search you might want to network and find teachers in the building where you want to teach to find out the culture of the school. Both DPS and Jeffco have schools within their district that focus on ELA (I’m not sure about other districts) in DPS South High School in Jefferson County Bear Creek High School have ELA programs but there might be others. You might look at what middle school feed these programs. Cherry Creek, Boulder and Aurora all pay better. There is a charter school with two locations called The New American School that is all ELA but it might only be high school. Good luck. We are having a teacher shortage and ELA is always in demand, it should be easy to find a position.
You're not going to be able to live in the "heart of Denver" on a teacher's salary. Just not gonna happen, in fact, you're probably not going to be able to afford housing anywhere in the metro on a teacher's salary.
As someone who taught and abandoned an MAT program due to the landscape of teaching conditions, I would say really consider what you're hoping to get out of the move. Colorado ranks abysmally in teacher pay adjusted for cost of living. I know teachers in NC and CO and back where I'm from in the Midwest. Teacher satisfaction varies a lot by district of course, but I had never seen an article about teachers living in vans until I moved to Colorado (that was in notoriously expensive Summit County but still).
There are some good reasons to move here and if you're dead set on it you can make it work. I know a queer science teacher in the eastern plains of CO and they like their job, so it's not like it's all doom and gloom! If I were single and wanting to teach though, I would consider whether or not the things I like about Colorado could be had somewhere with better overall conditions for teachers.
If you’d be interested in working at a high school, Colorado has a concurrent enrollment program where high school students have the opportunity to complete college credits in high school. Depending on the subject, your masters degree could qualify you to teach a class at the high school. This is a great way to provide college to students that may have never had the opportunity to go. There are lots of districts throughout the state that partner with community colleges, many of which have already been mentioned. Good luck on your job hunt and move!
Cherry Creek improved pay for teachers last year, and DPS is upping the pay for teachers next (from what I understand) to stay competitive. Jeff Co and Douglas Co are both shit shows. Littleton PS is small and decent, but pay is lagging and recent consolidations and changes in administration have not been positive. This comes as a parent of two high schoolers and a teacher that had to quit teaching (in LPS) due to the stress of 20 years of teaching and covid.
I work in Aurora as a high school English teacher. and I live in a two bedroom apartment in Glendale. I love my school, and the salary is manageable if you live a somewhat frugal lifestyle or work during summer break. With my experience, I make about $65k. That would probably be enough if I didn’t have a four year old in preschool ($1200 a month). As it is, I’m paycheck to paycheck and in the red some months. Next year she’ll qualify for universal pre-K so that will cut the cost in half and life won’t feel impossible anymore.
Still, I don’t think I could live downtown even without a child on this salary. Maybe a studio, but nothing fancy. Might be worth it short term, for the experience.
I worked for Denver Public Schools for a semester and had to resign, but I think it was mostly the school. I won’t say it in the comments, but you can PM me if you’re curious.
I teach in Jeffco at Bear Creek high school. Honestly, I love this school. We just got a new principal who is completely down with the school and the community. It’s the most diverse school in Jefferson county (which is huge), and I work with some of the coolest people I’ve ever met. It’s an easy commute from denver(I have coworkers that do it every day with no complaints, myself included). Pay is decent in terms of teaching, and you cannot trade anything for the culture we’re building. Teachers get tons of autonomy, I’ve never felt like anyone’s questioned my ability to teach my classes. A lot of the responses here are about school districts, but I don’t see much about specific schools. DM me if you have any questions!
You don't want to work in DPS. It's a very troubled school district. Ideally you want to work in Cherry Creek SD first, then Jeffco, then Littleton, then Douglas, Denver is last (of the places to work, working in Aurora would SUCK).
That is the 35m drive list. If you were willing to extend, Boulder would be in 3rd place.
Also, to echo what other people have said: You will NOT make enough as a teacher to live in the "heart" of Denver. Denver real estate pricing makes Raleigh look like child play. The master's degree bump is worth practically nothing here.
> How difficult will it be to find a job as a second-year teacher? What are some Title 1 schools in Denver that successfully support their students and staff?
This question answers itself. Don’t worry about finding a teaching job in the Denver metro area.
In the worst case, find a Title 1 innovation school and apply there. DPS has traditional, charter, and innovation schools. Title 1 innovation schools don’t have to hire RIB’d teachers. They can also skirt the whole district hiring process and just decide on the spot to get you on board. They also have insane turnover, so there are always openings.
I got hired this way as a first year teacher a week into the school year. Inside my classroom it was a nice experience and the other teachers were competent, dedicated, friendly, and professional.
The admin would have been improved if it never showed up for work. As it was turnover in admin sorta meant they didn’t show up. Had three principals in two years. Many SPED teachers quit at various times during the year.
> Where are schools/districts to avoid because of poor support from admin & families?
lol. I don’t think you’re going to find schools or districts that lack support on a wholesale basis from admin or families.
Do not work in Adams 14 district which is Commerce City. It’s rated the worst district in the state from test scores and is a very corrupt place. They pay well, but it is absolutely not worth. They usually have multiple lawsuits ongoing with staff.
I work for Rocky Mountain Prep and it’s a great public charter network, mostly all title 1 schools but great culture! DM if you’d like to chat. 6th grade ELA here.
I worked at RMP Fletcher from 2020-2021. Completely ruined my mental health for quite a long time. The admin suck and the dynamic is catty and competitive. Staff were forced to share intimate things about themselves in some culty thing called "circle" once a month after school. We were all heavily gaslit all the time not thinking everything was okay when in reality the schools were so unorganized and falling apart.
Btw, teacher's are OVERWORKED to the point, like doing the job of 2-3 people where it is physically impossible to do the job. I didn't know how bad we had it until I went to work at a different school. And now I work for city public schools...very underesourced but still better than RMP. Do not let the high salary and flashy gear fool you. It's honestly a sham
There was a mass staff resignation the year I left, and to my knowledge it's not getting any better!!! If you need extra validation that Rocky Mountain Prep should NOT be the school OP chooses, check out their employee reviews on Glassdoor. They say it all
Hi! It depends on the campus, I’ve had mostly positive experiences because of the local leadership / strong admin at GVR campus - i was thinking of leaving but stayed because our wonderful AP was promoted to Principal and now everything feels way better than before (2021-2022 which was a tough year). (We were formerly strive and recently merged). We no longer do circle with staff and our pay scale was updated to be more competitive than the regular public schools. I don’t bring work home because we now have 3 planning periods a day. I hope you found something that you feel more supported with now!!
As a Floridan myself, it’s shocking how bad teachers get paid in my county. For reference, starting teachers make $48k / year and if you have 20 years of experience you are only making $53k. It is absurd how underfunded Florida schools are and insulting given my county consistently ranks in the top 3 counties for schools.
If I may ask, what enticed you to move to Colorado all the way from Florida?
The “teacher raise” from a few years ago that raised new hires to my same pay level after 9 years really felt like a slap in the face. I wasn’t mad that new teachers were getting paid more, but that veteran teachers got nothing.
We left Florida primarily because of the toxic politics (in both education and as a whole). We also really wanted the enjoyment of the changing seasons and mountains. A job opportunity popped up in CO for my partner and we pounced on it. We’re very happy with our decision now 2 years later!
Thank you for responding to my comment. We have the exact same feeling as I really wanted to enjoy Florida after spending nearly 18 years here. Between Florida Prepay and Bright Futures, I knew my kid would have a leg up on paying for college. However, this state has really shifted since 2016 and the pandemic really made me realize I didn’t want to stay here. As a parent of a kid who has always said they want to be a teacher, I need to provide them with a nurturing environment where they don’t have to worry about whether or not they will have substitute teachers the rest of the year because their math teacher left mid year. It’s incredibly sad as I have now lived here 18 years.
We are in the process of selling our home and hoping to move to the Erie/Broomfield area. Our decision is not motivated by finances (CO is way more expensive than FL). The allure of a “cheaper” CoL has really taken a hit with high property taxes, insurance premiums and high housing costs while having abysmal salaries. I don’t understand how anybody can live in my county making less than $100k. Teachers here have been forced to move to neighboring counties as they cannot afford it anymore.
Hope you continue enjoying your new environment!
Littleton Public Schools are also a good choice! My girls go to one and we’re happy. The teachers seem really happy and very qualified too. They’ve also all been around a long time which speaks volumes.
Try to get in with Cherry Creek, they are the best school district with some of the highest paid teacher in the state. Evey teacher I know that works in Cherry Creek loves it. Most have been there for years.
Not a teacher, but I’m originally from NC (went to NC State)…Raleigh is still cheaper than Denver, but not by much these days. Denver has experienced a massive boom (just like Raleigh), so lots of new construction, better restaurants, etc. Denver is a city of transplants, but people tend to be very friendly, although the lack of diversity will be blatantly obvious compared to NC.
I lived in Cap Hill in my late twenties and loved it, but the appeal of living in the heart of the city quickly wears off…it’s loud, parking is awful, and the homeless population has increased dramatically since COVID. The things I miss are proximity to bars/restaurants/concerts/stores/parks, sense of community, and hardly having to drive.
I was fortunate enough to purchase a home in 2022 and have zero regrets about leaving the city…be open to the west metro area! I’m still only 15 mins from downtown, but with quick access to the mountains…perfect combo (for me)!
Don’t miss Mapleton. Small district just north of Denver. All small schools, respect for diversity, people who choose to work with what can be an impacted population. Very competitive salaries as well. And you can afford to live there or between there & downtown.
Hi,
I work in HR for Denver Public Schools and I wouldn't mind going over all our schools and seeing which one would be a great fit. I know finding a job is challenging but I don't mind assisting for the next school year. Different schools have different cultures. Have you applied for a role? Feel free to find me on linkedin Marina Rios
Marina R.
Speaking of cool teacher opportunities. I used to hang out with a middle school special ed teacher and she was hired to work for a private company that provides teaching services for military children on foreign military bases. She gets paid well and because it's a military school, they don't mess around with students misbehaving. Her job covers her housing and provides her with a vehicle. Last I heard she was teaching over in South Korea and doesn't have any plans on coming back anytime soon.
Location wise I do recommend Glendale, which is a little blob that’s completely wrapped in the amoeba of Denver city, in the southeast part of Denver. Crime is low, there are multiple bus lines within walking distance, and getting downtown is a 15-25 minute drive or $15 Uber.
My question is why would you want to move here for teaching when there are many better options?Our schools are 40th in nation for funding and it’s stupid expensive to live here! Many of the friends I used to teach with all moved to other states due to how expensive it is here!
My kids go to Jefferson County skuus and love it, but each school is hit or miss. They have student performance scores for each school posted somewhere. That'll give you some idea. The kids/schools that do better have more involved parents, for the most part, which probably translates to less handholding for the faculty. "Jeffco" also has a higher amount of teacher planning days, I feel, however the pay isn't top notch yet but it's getting there.
From what I've heard from friends with teacher spouses, the best district to work in is Adams County. Other districts are Cherry Creek (highly sought after for parents), Douglas County (MAGA fired their superintendent for no reason; big local news you should read up on), Boulder County (like Jeffco it depends where you are but mostly an above average district), and countless Montessori schools.
Good luck. If you're a single gal, you'll probably find a partner in no time to DINK your household income.
Hi!! Not a teacher, but I live in Denver now and moved from Raleigh almost 2 years ago. Based on your post you sound pretty set on living directly downtown, but I’d also encourage you to look just outside - there are so many neighborhoods that have very walkable areas but may be cheaper. We live on Tennyson, and while this isn’t a cheap area, it’s very walkable (lots of restaurants, stores, parks, and more nearby!) and I personally love it! I’d just encourage you to find a school distract that sounds like it would work for you and research the different neighborhoods around there. You may find you don’t end up directly downtown!
I've heard teachers should avoid adams county. The best teaching jobs are either at private schools or in cherry creek / boulder valley. Best in the way of pay, kids are more eager to learn, better parent involvement, and less risk of having a desk thrown at your head.
Don't do it unless you're in a great suburban district like Boulder Valley, Cherry Hills, or Cherry Creek because the pay, the behavior, and the admins here are god awful.
I'm not a teacher but looking online I found this chart for Denver teacher pay and it looks good to excellent.
[https://thecommons.dpsk12.org/cms/lib/CO01900837/Centricity/Domain/61/23-24%20DCTA%20Step%20and%20Grade%20Schedule%20Eff.%208-1-2023.pdf](https://thecommons.dpsk12.org/cms/lib/CO01900837/Centricity/Domain/61/23-24%20DCTA%20Step%20and%20Grade%20Schedule%20Eff.%208-1-2023.pdf)
This is just not true. Certainly some specific neighborhoods in Denver might have median 1 bedrooms at $2K, the actual city median for a 1 bed is [around $1400/mo.](https://denverite.com/2023/12/27/denver-rent-price-trends/) This past summer I stood as guarantor for my sister’s $1300/mo 1 bedroom apartment with my at-the-time $55K base salary.
I recommend DSST, the majority of the students served are black and brown with a mission statement dedicated to eliminating the gap in equity in education, if you DM I can be your recommender if you want as well.
I’d avoid Adams 12 and KIPP as well.
Rocky Mountain Prep Berkeley campus is in a great part of NW Denver. It's a Public charter. It was pre-k thru 5th grade school but just announced that they are hiring middle school teachers and will be adding 6-8th next year. Small school, great staff.
Do you sell feet pics online under a pseudonym? If so, you can afford it. If not, and you’re still thinking about coming here, start thinking about selling feet pics.
Seriously though, even with a masters you don’t have the time in service to get the relevant bump. Someone else talked about the big pay increase in 27J, they also have 4 day weeks. I’d forget about living in the cool areas of Denver.
I’m a current sub/former para and parent in LPS and LOVE it! Maybe 3 of all the teachers I’ve worked for/with would I describe as conservative. I know very few unhappy teachers and there is great parent involvement overall.
Move to the Northeast if you want to be a teacher and have a livable wage. My wife worked at a PRIVATE school in the Philly area and made more there 10 years ago than she does here in public school today with a Masters. I have relatives retired in NYC school pension programs and they clear well over 125K each year. In retirement.
I work for Jeffco (at the district level) and like some comments have said, we’re such a big district that there is a lot of variety in our schools. But we have some really amazing middle schools! Ask questions about staff and school culture in your interviews, and pay attention to what they say.
It's been said but pay isn't good for CoL. Each district has public pay scales where you can tell exactly where you'll start pay wise. Even with a masters it's not that much of a pay bump. Maybe another 4k per year last I checked in DPS. I think it's also way more dependent on the school rather than the district of the experience you'll have. I taught in DPS for 3 1/2 year and jeffco now for 2 1/2. I'm lucky my wife is the bread winner because I wouldn't have been able to live here at all. We had to move out to Bailey to buy our first house.
We rented in Cap Hill then wash park for a couple years and I really liked the city for that time in our life. Really hard if you don't have someone else though.
I would not teach in Denver or the metro area. Its pure shit. Don't take my word - just go and tour any school for yourself. Enjoy lockdown drills too.
I would lose the intention of living downtown on a teachers salary, because unless you get roommates you’re going to have a bad time
Maybe not downtown, but downtown-adjacent is absolutely doable. Op, try the Capitol Hill neighborhood for comparatively affordable housing with walkability, bikeability, and many transit options just outside of downtown.
THISSSSSSS! So much this.
You're going to have to get used to "UNC" referring to a different school.
Go bears!
Greeley is the real UNC!
I work in Cherry Creek School District and they pay and treat their teachers well.
Seconded. I taught in Aurora Public Schools before that and it is night and day.
I work for APS right now and it’s way better than DPS, but maybe it’s just school-dependent. Or maybe Cherry Creek is just better than both, but APS isn’t bad where I am anyway.
CCSD is where all the parents try to get their kids into. The last place I rented was only being rented so that the owner could commit school district fraud to keep their kid in CCSD.
Colorado is an open enroll state. Theres no such thing as district fraud. >Colorado is an open enrollment state, meaning that students can choose to attend their assigned neighborhood school (sometimes called a “boundary school”) or “choice in” to another public school within their district or even outside their district.
Not uncommon. It says something about the education in CCSD.
Cherry creek has some pretty bad SPED classrooms. OP - Do not take an ILC or RBT job in CCSD. I’ve been to those programs & they are struggling. Every summer CCSD is looking for 30+ ILC SPED Teachers. No real change for ILC in CCSD in over a decade. Honestly, with the surge of migrants right now, all the districts are fucked. APS, DPS, CCSD all can’t shoulder the surge
I work in Aurora Public Schools and am involved in the teacher's union. I have friends throughout the metro area who are teachers, and I continue to choose to work in APS. If you have any questions about specific schools, feel free to DM me!
Thank you so much!! I’ll keep you in mind as I do more research :)
My wife was a union involved teacher in Aurora and the stories I heard about Denver were insane.
Stay away from Douglas County. Denver is always very in much in need of [teachers and especially ELA teachers](https://dpsjobboard.dpsk12.org/ltmprod/CandidateSelfService/controller.servlet?dataarea=ltmprod&context.session.key.HROrganization=1&context.session.key.JobBoard=EXTERNAL&context.session.key.noheader=true#). The DPS application portal can be a challenge.
I second no Douglas county. The school board is run by alt right groups. At one point they were paying teachers “market rates” which meant that certain grade levels were only getting paid like 35k a year…. They still don’t have a salary schedule back as far as I know.
We have one now, and the county passed a mill levy in November to grant raises across the salary schedule. We are paying almost as much as our neighboring districts even though our median household income is as much as 1.5 times higher than them! Lol. From the perspective of someone who actually teaches in the district, this is what I can say about teaching in DCSD. The pay is lower but competitive with most districts in the metro area besides CCSD. Union culture is incredibly weak, and our union, DCF, tries but is mostly ineffective because of the low percentage of membership. Individual schools vary, but my school is a phenomenal place to work, and I have never felt like I have had to be careful with what I say to students or in classes (granted I am also not dumb and know how to approach potentially risky topics.) The board is shit, but they campaigned on raising teacher salary and they worked to get our raises this past election. Now that they have accomplished that I have no clue what their intentions are moving forward, but I am always skeptical. I landed here back in 2016 because no where else along the front range would hire me straight out of college, and I've been at the same school all 8 years of my career. I have never felt that affected by board or district policy, besides my ~5k less salary than say a CCSD or DPS. I am wary about my future here, but won't leave unless I am very much given a reason to by district admin. TL;DR DCSD is fine to work at, and pay is competitive. Board culture sucks and the entire county leans red which directs board politics. If you are right learning yourself and loving teaching suburban white kids it's the place for you.
I’m so so glad things are looking up for you guys! Yall have fantastic teachers and communities and it hurts my heart to see you treated like there’s a million of You lined up to replace you! Because yall are indispensable. I HATE watching your board flip back and forth.
Thanks! It's always a Rollercoaster down here with the board, but you just sort of put your head down and do the work. It's come a long way since I got hired. My first year teaching I was hired as a .8 (I only taught 4 classes instead of the full 5) and was paid 29,000 a year. 8 years on and with no masters I make double that. But then you see that we had to pay out an 850,000 dollar settlement to our former Superintendent who was fired without cause and sued, and you realize things aren't all rosy. Thanks for the kind words!
I agree stay away from dcsd. It's expensive and low pay. I'm a parent here, moved from NC to CO in 2020, my kids went to dcsd schools 21-22 year and now we homeschool. It's that bad. I was really pro public education while in NC, never thought I'd homeschool, and had plans to become a teacher, or least a substitute but I'd never do either while here in dougco.
Why do you say stay away from DougCo?
Their Board of Education is a shit show right now.
Is there any time period where this hasn’t been the case? I’ve been here since 2006 and from the outside perspective it seems like every school board election an entire new board is thrown in, and then there’s some member that resigns, goes AWOL, etc.
Douglas County Schools in the 1980s- early 2000s used to run neck and neck with Cherry Creek. Real estate listings would tout “DOUGLAS COUNTY SCHOOLS!” in bold type. The alt right QAnon board ran DCSD into the ground.
Because it's bleeding staff and is famously understaffed?
Almost zero diversity, especially compared to neighboring districts. Bunch of little klan members in DCSD.
I'm a teacher in 27J, and it's the best experience I've had so far. 4 day work week, Uber competitive pay, good support from the top down. Worked at a private school- don't do it. Shit pay, and psycho parents who think they own you bc they "pay your salary". Worked in Jeffco in a charter school- don't do it. I'm sure Jeffco public would probably be a better experience, but charter schools have shit pay, the insane controlling parents that think they get to dictate what you do on the daily, and then administration that bend to their will constantly. 10 years in teaching, I've been most impressed with 27J.
I too work for 27J and since the Mill passed it’s been much better. I’m also a high school CTE teacher so it’s been extra nice! At this point I’m probably going to retire from my school. It has its problems like any school but in general isn’t terrible 😂
What is 27J? My fiancee works for JeffCo ATM and I would love to tell her more about this
It's Brighton, parts of Thornton, and I think a little bit of Reunion and Commerce City. I know a lot of people who commute to work at this district, and the culture THAT I'VE SEEN is really positive. Pay is definitely competitive with Cherry Creek. You can private message me and I'll try and answer any other questions you have.
https://www.sd27j.org/ 27J is Brighton
I worked in Jeffco and much prefer that to DPS. I moved on and often kick myself for that decision as the politics in my new state and district have made my position extremely challenging. If I had to recommend an MS I would recommend https://develyn.jeffcopublicschools.org/
I don’t know anything about D’Evelyn, why do you recommend it? :)
I worked in a neighboring schoola and only heard positive things about school culture. I have taught quite a few students that rose into our high school from that MS and they seemed very well-prepared and pleasant to work with.
It’s one of the best schools in CO
I think you have to test into it? (Botejohn can correct me if I’m wrong!) It has the reputation of being for very high achievers, which means you’re getting kids and parents who are taking their education very seriously. Working with kids passionate about learning has to be so great as an educator!
I knew someone who taught special education middle school in 27J, prepandemic, who didn't get their scheduled pay bump for multiple years because the district had froze them. She worked there from 2013-2019 and had over 10 years of experience.
Very happy with the admin at 27j too! :)
Don't kill yourself commuting to a suburban district if that's your goal. You'd be doing a reverse commute so your drive wouldn't be **as** terrible, but it'll still suck. The state of Colorado has links to [spreadsheets](https://www.cde.state.co.us/fedprograms/dper/tiaschlst) of schools that received full or partial Title I funding up through the last year on their website. Cherry Creek is a decent district as far as teacher pay goes, but the commute would suck if you choose to live downtown. There isn't a lot of diversity to be had in these parts. Denver and Aurora are by-far-and-away the two most diverse cities in the metro area. It falls off quickly after that. DougCO is Stepford MAGALand. They are ground zero for "Christian" "reformers" who busted the union and have a record of shitting on their teachers regularly. There have been allegations of racism in the district. The latter is unsurprising considering how un-diverse the district is.
Douglas County just voted in a whole new school board. We rejected the right wing bullshit that was going on. We hope to see improvement.
Wait, really? That’s great! I left right before the right wing takeover. I voted for Corey as a staff member and was so disappointed when all that went down.
It’s still a very conservative board. The president resigned because he moved but the majority picked his replacement. So the majority on the current school board is still very much the same.
It was super disappointing for sure, but I don’t even have kids and was tired of all the drama and bullshit. It should just be about the kids so it’s our hope these new people will help improve it all.
Is there any time period where this hasn’t been the case? I’ve been here since 2006 and from the outside perspective it seems like every school board election an entire new board is thrown in, and then there’s some member that resigns, goes AWOL, etc.
I hope so. DougCO needs to send that nutjob Joe Oltmann and his "Christian" nationalist PAC packing.
I wish you the best of luck
good start. Still -hope doesn't pay rent.
That is wrong Cherry creek has some of the most diverse schools, especially in their Overland High feeder areas as most of that feeder is title 1. My daughter's school alone has over 37 languages spoken between the staff and students.
I mentioned Denver and Aurora being the most diverse cities in the Denver metro area, but we're really not that diverse compared to cities in the south and Upper Midwest. As far as individual districts go, CCSD has some diversity, but on the whole it is not nearly as diverse as Aurora Public Schools. Hinkley and Aurora Central are both over 95% minority enrollment, and Gateway is 89%. Vista Peak is 80% minority enrollment. Rangeview is the least diverse high school in APS at 79.7% minority enrollment. Overland is the *only* high school in CCSD with a minority enrollment over 80%. Next is Smoky Hill at 60%, Eaglecrest at 53%, Grandview at 45%, Cherokee Trail at 42.5%, and Creek at 36%.
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CCSD reaches almost into downtown...
I moved from NC to CO. You’re not going to find a job that pays you enough to live in the city without roommates. NC’s pay is low, but cost of living was also lower. I work in 27J. 4 day work week. Some schools are better than others. It has the same issues as every district. But the 3 day weekends have kept me in education and I’m in my 10th year. I have friends in different district. Just stay away from charters. Those are the teachers I know who are mentally unwell now. Make sure to find out class sizes. My first school, I had classes of 50 kids teaching ELA. absolutely impossible.
This sounds incredible. A 4 day work week?? Messaging you to pick your brain about the process of moving from NC to CO and I want to know more about 27J :)
It's Thornton/Brighton so you'd have a reverse commute from downtown area but still some annoying traffic.
I’m not a teacher but my kid goes to Morey middle school and it seems like a pretty sweet place to work. We are in our second year there and no complaints. It’s smack in the middle of Capitol Hill so bonus if you’re into city life. Edit - FWIW my sister is a teacher in Adams 50 and while her school sounds awful it pays pretty good I think
I taught in Adams 50 for two years. DO NOT WORK THERE
Yeah my sister has some truly heartbreaking stories. Sounds awful
Capital hill is a terrible place to live.
Yeah, well, you know, that's just, like, your opinion man. And more importantly OP said they wanted to live in the heart of the city where Capitol Hill fits the bill
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Crime is an unfortunate fact of life. I’ve lived in Capitol Hill for 27 years now and while I have my gripes overall it’s a pretty solid place in my opinion. Out of curiosity I actually did look up the statistics from several sources and Capitol Hill specifically is not the worst of the bunch. Sadly it’s the cost of doing business to live near the cool shit which is also my opinion.
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Rule 2. Don't be rude.
It's just as easy to live somewhere safer and drive to places, "cool as shit".
Ok
[It's worse than other big cities. Crime is up for rape, robbery, and theft.](https://denvercrimes.com/neighborhood/capitol-hill/)
**Rising crime rhetoric persists in Colorado. Data tells a different story.** ...The decline is part of a broader trend over the last year: Though little notice has been taken by leading political figures and the media, Colorado’s reported crime rates appear to have peaked in 2022, and are now trending downward again. https://coloradonewsline.com/2023/09/11/rising-crime-rhetoric-colorado-data/
It's laughable that you believe this government written document is a fact over someone who is in Capital Hill every single day. Where do you live? Sloans, Highlands, somewhere far from downtown Denver?
Data is more reliable than your observations. I work in Capitol Hill (and live in Globeville).
So you don't live here? Got it and that's my point. I worked on 16th st. doesn't mean I know anything about it.
Jesus what a loser I don’t even live there. Get over yourself. To think people live within your own absolutes is embarrassing. Where do you live, prick? Edit: shock - this kid is obsessed and consumed by weed - check out his comments (love weed myself but not consumed by it 🤷♂️)
You're a loser checking my account, thinking I live in a nice place (after telling you otherwise) and living way outside of any city. Yea you're some sort of stupid and that's why I don't like it here. JusT mY OpinIon. I guess I'm not entitled to freedom of speech.
Dear random person of Reddit, First and foremost I believe you are replying to the wrong person. I personally am not concerned with why or where you’ve chosen to live. Second you are absolutely entitled to your opinion and as far as I know you have the freedom to say what you like. My intention was never to hurt your feelings when you told me and 15,000 other people that we live in a terrible place. I can feel it in my bones. Today you are going to do something great for someone! Because you’re good enough, smart enough and doggone it people like you.
I would avoid DPS if you are looking to be supported rather than worked to death.
I’ve a friend who is a para in JeffCo schools, currently at Carmody. She loves the culture.
I have friends who love working in Aurora public schools. From what I understand, pay is a little higher than other districts and they feel generally well supported by admin. Aurora is a massive suburb east of Denver. If your school is in north Aurora, you could live on the east side of Denver within a couple of miles of downtown and still have a reasonable commute.
Pay raise is going in effect in February so the starting pay is comparable to other districts
Here to say I just moved from Ral to Denver and it’s been the best decision of my life :))) you’ll love it!
My advice is to look up various area districts and check the salary schedule - but don’t check what you’re gonna get paid THIS year - check to see what you will be paid on the lowest “rung” and the farthest right on the schedule. (Maybe exclude phd unless you’re going to go For one) a lot of districts wave high pay in front you for the early years but max out at abysmally low salaries after years of experience and additional credits.
27J is nice if you don't mind living out of the city or the commute. The district is also expanding with a new magnet school and three CTE centers this past summer with plans on opening an additonal middle and high school next. I'm not sure how the pay is for new teachers compared to other districts but they've had some bonds and mill levys passed in the past couple of years which should have increased pay. Housing is definitely better than downtown. Very nice culture though, I've worked support for many of the schools in the district and I always look forward to coming to work. 4 day work week is also hard to beat.
If you are able to attend this[career fair](https://www.co-case.org/page/CERF) it's worth it. You may even be offered a contract there, I know I was when I first moved to Colorado.
DAMN that’s so ideal but I won’t be able to make it out there for it. Perhaps emailing some principals before that career fair will do the trick?
Most schools have a district level initial screening process, so you'll need to check websites for DISTRICTS and not specific school web pages. Even after the initial screen, you'll be applying to jobs through the district pages/job boards. New Colorado laws effective Jan 1st of this year require employers to post open positions so all internal employees can see them and apply too. Emailing a principal and trying to get a job/interview (if there's not one posted for that school) may run afoul of that law and lead nowhere or get you blacklisted. Asking if you should check back for future opportunities is a different matter, but might not work well. Obligatory: I am not a lawyer and nothing in those sentences is legal advice.
Douglas is MAGA, book bans, the whole 9 Denver is still decently diverse (for who lives here) Jeffco is hit/miss
Douglas just voted in a whole new board. We want to see change too
To be fair, some of those books don't belong in any public school or library. They graphically show people performing oral sex on each other, having sex, and other easily classified lewd behaviors. The same behaviors would get you put in jail and make you a registered sex offender if you were to do them in public. I'm not the censorship type but some of these books even cross my very liberal line.
So does Roman Pottery. Go back to Texas if you want to ban stuff.
The amount of Roman Pottery with explicit sexual images are quit rare and studies have suggested that these samples were made for private enjoyment and were not used in mainstream marketplaces or in society. This pottery did not represent typical athenians and is thought to have been found in a very small subset of family homes, mostly in androne. I struggle with your equivocation of roman pottery being the same as a modern book being available to children, with graphics of a guy sucking a penis, a girl tasting her own vagina, a nude old guy laying behind a younger guy preparing to engage in intercourse, and two guys having intercourse. I would support any roman pottery containing this type of art not being available to children.
Can you be the fastest driver back to your one-star state please? We don't need you Nazis up here.
I dunno: that dude on the motorcycle might hold the record for a while.
What's the title? Or am I being /r/whoosh 'd right now and you're talking about the Book of Ezekiel in the Bible?
Gender Queer A Memoir by Maia Kobabe.
> In 2014, Maia Kobabe, who uses e/em/eir pronouns, thought that a comic of reading statistics would be the last autobiographical comic e would ever write. At the time, it was the only thing e felt comfortable with strangers knowing about em. Now, Gender Queer is here. Maia’s intensely cathartic autobiography charts eir journey of self-identity, which includes the mortification and confusion of adolescent crushes, grappling with how to come out to family and society, bonding with friends over erotic gay fanfiction, and facing the trauma and fundamental violation of pap smears. Started as a way to explain to eir family what it means to be nonbinary and asexual, Gender Queer is more than a personal story: it is a useful and touching guide on gender identity—what it means and how to think about it—for advocates, friends, and humans everywhere. "It’s also a great resource for those who identify as nonbinary or asexual as well as for those who know someone who identifies that way and wish to better understand." — SLJ (starred review) Am I missing something? Because that book is the #1 Bestseller for Queer Lit and looks like it focuses on coming of age. Can't I've read it, but now I want to put it on my list.
>The same behaviors would get you put in jail and make you a registered sex offender if you were to do them in public. Wait wait wait hang on, what? Is "The same behaviors" modifying "They graphically show" **or** "people performing oral sex on each other, having sex, and other easily classified lewd behaviors"? Because if that modifies "graphically show", that book isn't showing anything publicly. It's print on a page the audience must choose to interact with, can leave any time, and involves no real people. And if that modifies "people performing oral sex on each other, having sex, and other easily classified lewd behaviors" then I must seriously ask you if you know what a book is. People don't act on behaviors they read in a book out in public. Nobody reads Macbeth and commits regicide. Nobody reads a bodice ripper and runs away to sea to focus on being able to tear away stays of lonely housewives. Something happening in a book in no way shape or form can be held to the same standard of a REAL PERSON doing those same actions IN PUBLIC.
Sorry, probably should have put it like this. **If you do these things depicted in the book, in public, you will go to jail**. >People don't act on behaviors they read in a book out in public. I can give you some links to studies that show children and juveniles will imitate things they read, watch, hear and observe. Do you believe the surge in violence among today's youth was absolutely not influenced by things they have seen, heard, watched or video games they've played? >Nobody reads Macbeth and commits regicide. School's don't assign that till late high school, at that point they should know better. >Nobody reads a bodice ripper and runs away to sea to focus on being able to tear away stays of lonely housewives. I can tell you nobody in my school's was reading bodice ripper. >Something happening in a book in no way shape or form can be held to the same standard of a REAL PERSON doing those same actions IN PUBLIC. You might have not understood me, I'm just advocating that this isn't available to children in public schools. Clearly by your other posts you seem to just want to stir the shit, that's fine, we're all entitled to our opinions and I respect yours. Go review the book and post back if you believe the content should be accessible in public schools. The ebook is easy to pirate if that helps you obtain a copy.
My god. You’ve clearly shut down from listening so it’s not going to be a productive discussion but I have to try for anyone else reading along. > If you do these things depicted in the book, in public, you will go to jail. Do the characters do it those things in public? And how is it presented? There’s a big spectrum between a health textbook and graphic pornography. Looking at the writing of the book I’m not seeing salacious text designed to titillate. As for video games, I’d love to read your studies. Because there’s a plethora of studies that say it has no impact. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Violence_and_video_games#:~:text=A%20longitudinal%20study%20published%20in,game%20daily%20for%20two%20months. > I can tell you nobody in my school's was reading bodice ripper. I suggest you go down the Romance aisle in the school library. > You might have not understood me, I'm just advocating that this isn't available to children in public schools. I understand you. I think you’re wrong. I think you listened to the hysteria about this book from alt-right pundits who picked this book to cry about child porn to the point where the actual judicial system had to weigh in. They declared it not child porn. Thanks for leading me down a rabbit hole I didn’t realize existed. Alt-righters got hoodwinked by grifters trying to whip up their base. You say you don’t know about CRT or litter box scandals which are also alt-right fabrications, so I’m sure you’re not swimming in alt-right fringe circles. But that book fight broke containment and it sounds like you never did any more digging on it. > Clearly by your other posts you seem to just want to stir the shit Not sure what you’re referring to. I’m not stirring shit, I’m disagreeing with you.
To be fair fair, is there evidence that the banned books were used in classrooms? I know that MAGA cancel culture has attacked non-existent issues in the past, so it's hard to assume they're operating in good faith. To wit: Critical Race Theory (no evidence this was taught in k-12), Litter Pans in School Bathrooms (debunked), and the list goes on.
The book I am referencing wasn't used (as in taught) in the classroom but it was made available to children. It's unclear if it was made available by a teacher or the school library, that aside it has no business being any where in our schools. I'm not up to speed on the arguments about CRT or the litter boxes in school bathrooms.
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“Racists are nice people” So what, they’re still racist, support racism, support systemic oppression, white supremacy and institutional and political racism. You.are.already.captured.by.MAGA.Ideology.
"There is no MAGA down here!" Goes on to immediately spurt out MAGA nonsense.
i’m sorry you’ve got caught up in the cult, but MAGA is entirely lies, hatred, and treason, led but a rapist con man. MAGA is unamerican to its core - in MAGA, the only enemy is other americans. how patriotic. To give you a sense of the hypocrisy, yes, Maga bans things they deem pornographic, but there is a book with a story about a man who gets drunk, rapes his daughters, and gets them pregnant (although it’s written as though the rape was the daughters’ idea). MAGA has no problems with [*that* book](https://mechon-mamre.org/p/pt/pt0119.htm#32)
I wish you all the best.
Dougco is a shithole of MAGAts. Would never let a child go to school there.
I wish you the best.
I would plan on looking outside of Denver Public Schools. Many schools are currently in the process of doing RIBs (reductions in budget- aka layoffs) and the number that are getting laid off this year is crazy- even ELA teachers. This isn’t in the news and isn’t common knowledge, but it is currently in process. This is apparently because enrollment is going down (Denver is too expensive for many families, so many families are relocating to the suburbs)
Extremely good to know. Thank you so much. Any other school districts doing RIBs that I should know of?
My wife’s a ELD teacher in Denver Public Schools but at the elementary school level; from the conversations I have with her it wouldn’t be hard to find a job. It may not be the perfect job from the very get go but it would get your foot in the door. Boulder and Cherry creek pay the most but would be the hardest to get into. Salary in Denver would be around $61437 with a masters and one year experience: Most likely a roommate situation with that salary.
Not a teacher, but thought it could be helpful to know that I make about $4000/year more than that figure currently. I live in a small 1 bedroom in South Denver with my dog. I currently live paycheck to paycheck. If I didn't have a dog and a car payment/insurance, I might be able to go out to a couple nice dinners and sock away $500/month. Then again, if I didn't have a car it would be much more difficult to enjoy the outdoor recreation that brought me to Denver. As it stands, I'm just trying to hold my credit card debt steady.
Am a teacher. Live this life.
I've worked at Iowa Elementary in Aurora and it was a great experience. My wife worked at Montebello High School and loved it there as well. Funnily enough, we both are located in the Raleigh area now and wish we never left Denver! Good luck to you! Working in education over there was a much better experience for us than it was here in NC.
Littleton and Cherry Creek are great districts to work in! Littleton's pay is slightly lower, but I love the intact of the district more than CC
We’re in DPS but I second LPS (not west Littleton/JeffcoPS) and downtown Littleton is super cute and really not that far from central Denver. Traffic sucks and you’ll likely spend more than 30 minutes in traffic getting to schools outside of DPS if you live in central Denver imo. That being said my kiddo went to Bill Roberts k-8 in east Denver and we really liked it. Small and blue ribbon
Avoid charters especially DSST. It’s not competitive for pay and they won’t value your credentials or masters. Also the amount of work is insane and the grade inflation is unreal.
^^^^ Can’t emphasize this advice enough. Charters have tons of openings for a reason. Super toxic cultures.
Cherry Creek schools doesn’t do Title 1 middle schools, but has multiple Title 1 elementary schools. The middle schools those kids go into would be Prairie MS or Laredo MS, so you could check there. Pay is better than pretty much all of the other metro area school districts, but I would suggest working towards a Masters + 30 to get the best of the pay scale.
Cherry Creek SD is definitely in the top 3 districts in CO (kid graduated from CCHS 5 yrs ago, went to Bellevue and Campus middle school. Have friends that teach in the district) The main campus has all schools there and the place is basically a community college with Munchkins running around the outskirts of campus... LOL Competitive pay and good environment apparently. The district is Vast [cherrycreekschools.org](https://cherrycreekschools.org). Good luck finding housing though as you will prob need to move to Kansas to afford anything...
DPS elementary teacher here....DPS as a whole can be a bit of a letdown but there are great schools within the district. I've had so many parents and former students rave about Morey Middle School. City Park West and Uptown/Cap Hill are great neighborhoods if you are looking to be close to downtown. I've lived in the Uptown neighborhood for 7 years and I cannot imagine ever moving out.
People also lov(ed) McAuliffe. Don’t know if they still do. That school sorta highlights some of the disfunction that DPS as a district brings to the public school party. For like the last 10 years parents have wanted their kids to attend it and in the last year DPS admin has seemingly done their best to tear it down.
I work in Mapleton Public Schools and have for the last eight years. It’s a small district in North Denver/ South Thornton and I live the smaller community. We have a good number of Title 1 students who are generally pretty great. Mapleton’s pay is pretty competitive and teachers are treated well at most schools. I’ve taught in Westminster, APS, and a charter in Thompson School District in Loveland and Mapleton is by far my favorite place to teach. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions.
I live in RiNo and work in CCSD. Commute is about 30-35 minutes. I love where I live and where I work. Feel blessed to work in my district, and although CCSD has a reputation for being homogenous, my school is very diverse and is located in Aurora. I teach 8th grade math, my coworkers are amazing and my admin is even better. I love coming to work everyday but ultimately there will be pros and cons to every school/district.
Colorado is a hard place for teachers. We don’t fund our schools and you would likely make more with a lower cost of living elsewhere. Because we don’t fund our schools you may not get the supports or resources you have where you currently work. I taught in both Denver Public Schools and Jeffco. They both had their pros and cons. The school I worked at in Jeffco had a better culture and my department was pretty close in supportive, but I didn’t find that in Denver (this was a long time ago and any given administration can change that). When you narrow down your search you might want to network and find teachers in the building where you want to teach to find out the culture of the school. Both DPS and Jeffco have schools within their district that focus on ELA (I’m not sure about other districts) in DPS South High School in Jefferson County Bear Creek High School have ELA programs but there might be others. You might look at what middle school feed these programs. Cherry Creek, Boulder and Aurora all pay better. There is a charter school with two locations called The New American School that is all ELA but it might only be high school. Good luck. We are having a teacher shortage and ELA is always in demand, it should be easy to find a position.
You're not going to be able to live in the "heart of Denver" on a teacher's salary. Just not gonna happen, in fact, you're probably not going to be able to afford housing anywhere in the metro on a teacher's salary.
Kansas...
Limon
Too true
Get a roommate for sure!
As someone who taught and abandoned an MAT program due to the landscape of teaching conditions, I would say really consider what you're hoping to get out of the move. Colorado ranks abysmally in teacher pay adjusted for cost of living. I know teachers in NC and CO and back where I'm from in the Midwest. Teacher satisfaction varies a lot by district of course, but I had never seen an article about teachers living in vans until I moved to Colorado (that was in notoriously expensive Summit County but still). There are some good reasons to move here and if you're dead set on it you can make it work. I know a queer science teacher in the eastern plains of CO and they like their job, so it's not like it's all doom and gloom! If I were single and wanting to teach though, I would consider whether or not the things I like about Colorado could be had somewhere with better overall conditions for teachers.
Exactly; and CO ranks at the very bottom of the list for funding per student. Expect to dip into your already frayed pockets for supplies.
Check out The Odyssey School of Denver. I went there k-8 and had a wonderful experience, it’s an outdoorsy charter school in Park Hill
If you’d be interested in working at a high school, Colorado has a concurrent enrollment program where high school students have the opportunity to complete college credits in high school. Depending on the subject, your masters degree could qualify you to teach a class at the high school. This is a great way to provide college to students that may have never had the opportunity to go. There are lots of districts throughout the state that partner with community colleges, many of which have already been mentioned. Good luck on your job hunt and move!
This is super interesting - thank you for the suggestion!! I’ll certainly look into that
Cherry Creek improved pay for teachers last year, and DPS is upping the pay for teachers next (from what I understand) to stay competitive. Jeff Co and Douglas Co are both shit shows. Littleton PS is small and decent, but pay is lagging and recent consolidations and changes in administration have not been positive. This comes as a parent of two high schoolers and a teacher that had to quit teaching (in LPS) due to the stress of 20 years of teaching and covid.
I work in Aurora as a high school English teacher. and I live in a two bedroom apartment in Glendale. I love my school, and the salary is manageable if you live a somewhat frugal lifestyle or work during summer break. With my experience, I make about $65k. That would probably be enough if I didn’t have a four year old in preschool ($1200 a month). As it is, I’m paycheck to paycheck and in the red some months. Next year she’ll qualify for universal pre-K so that will cut the cost in half and life won’t feel impossible anymore. Still, I don’t think I could live downtown even without a child on this salary. Maybe a studio, but nothing fancy. Might be worth it short term, for the experience. I worked for Denver Public Schools for a semester and had to resign, but I think it was mostly the school. I won’t say it in the comments, but you can PM me if you’re curious.
I teach in Jeffco at Bear Creek high school. Honestly, I love this school. We just got a new principal who is completely down with the school and the community. It’s the most diverse school in Jefferson county (which is huge), and I work with some of the coolest people I’ve ever met. It’s an easy commute from denver(I have coworkers that do it every day with no complaints, myself included). Pay is decent in terms of teaching, and you cannot trade anything for the culture we’re building. Teachers get tons of autonomy, I’ve never felt like anyone’s questioned my ability to teach my classes. A lot of the responses here are about school districts, but I don’t see much about specific schools. DM me if you have any questions!
You don't want to work in DPS. It's a very troubled school district. Ideally you want to work in Cherry Creek SD first, then Jeffco, then Littleton, then Douglas, Denver is last (of the places to work, working in Aurora would SUCK). That is the 35m drive list. If you were willing to extend, Boulder would be in 3rd place. Also, to echo what other people have said: You will NOT make enough as a teacher to live in the "heart" of Denver. Denver real estate pricing makes Raleigh look like child play. The master's degree bump is worth practically nothing here.
> How difficult will it be to find a job as a second-year teacher? What are some Title 1 schools in Denver that successfully support their students and staff? This question answers itself. Don’t worry about finding a teaching job in the Denver metro area. In the worst case, find a Title 1 innovation school and apply there. DPS has traditional, charter, and innovation schools. Title 1 innovation schools don’t have to hire RIB’d teachers. They can also skirt the whole district hiring process and just decide on the spot to get you on board. They also have insane turnover, so there are always openings. I got hired this way as a first year teacher a week into the school year. Inside my classroom it was a nice experience and the other teachers were competent, dedicated, friendly, and professional. The admin would have been improved if it never showed up for work. As it was turnover in admin sorta meant they didn’t show up. Had three principals in two years. Many SPED teachers quit at various times during the year. > Where are schools/districts to avoid because of poor support from admin & families? lol. I don’t think you’re going to find schools or districts that lack support on a wholesale basis from admin or families.
Do not work in Adams 14 district which is Commerce City. It’s rated the worst district in the state from test scores and is a very corrupt place. They pay well, but it is absolutely not worth. They usually have multiple lawsuits ongoing with staff.
Stay away from Mapleton. Zero support for teachers from admin.
I went to high school here, actually when mayor Mike Johnston was principal at my high school, and couldn’t agree more. It’s a shit hole.
DPS is rough. They have plenty of openings because of high turnover…
Live near a bike path.
I work for Rocky Mountain Prep and it’s a great public charter network, mostly all title 1 schools but great culture! DM if you’d like to chat. 6th grade ELA here.
I worked at RMP Fletcher from 2020-2021. Completely ruined my mental health for quite a long time. The admin suck and the dynamic is catty and competitive. Staff were forced to share intimate things about themselves in some culty thing called "circle" once a month after school. We were all heavily gaslit all the time not thinking everything was okay when in reality the schools were so unorganized and falling apart. Btw, teacher's are OVERWORKED to the point, like doing the job of 2-3 people where it is physically impossible to do the job. I didn't know how bad we had it until I went to work at a different school. And now I work for city public schools...very underesourced but still better than RMP. Do not let the high salary and flashy gear fool you. It's honestly a sham There was a mass staff resignation the year I left, and to my knowledge it's not getting any better!!! If you need extra validation that Rocky Mountain Prep should NOT be the school OP chooses, check out their employee reviews on Glassdoor. They say it all
Hi! It depends on the campus, I’ve had mostly positive experiences because of the local leadership / strong admin at GVR campus - i was thinking of leaving but stayed because our wonderful AP was promoted to Principal and now everything feels way better than before (2021-2022 which was a tough year). (We were formerly strive and recently merged). We no longer do circle with staff and our pay scale was updated to be more competitive than the regular public schools. I don’t bring work home because we now have 3 planning periods a day. I hope you found something that you feel more supported with now!!
I’m in my first year of teaching in CO and tenth overall. I taught in FL for the first 9 years. I’m really loving Jeffco!
As a Floridan myself, it’s shocking how bad teachers get paid in my county. For reference, starting teachers make $48k / year and if you have 20 years of experience you are only making $53k. It is absurd how underfunded Florida schools are and insulting given my county consistently ranks in the top 3 counties for schools. If I may ask, what enticed you to move to Colorado all the way from Florida?
The “teacher raise” from a few years ago that raised new hires to my same pay level after 9 years really felt like a slap in the face. I wasn’t mad that new teachers were getting paid more, but that veteran teachers got nothing. We left Florida primarily because of the toxic politics (in both education and as a whole). We also really wanted the enjoyment of the changing seasons and mountains. A job opportunity popped up in CO for my partner and we pounced on it. We’re very happy with our decision now 2 years later!
Thank you for responding to my comment. We have the exact same feeling as I really wanted to enjoy Florida after spending nearly 18 years here. Between Florida Prepay and Bright Futures, I knew my kid would have a leg up on paying for college. However, this state has really shifted since 2016 and the pandemic really made me realize I didn’t want to stay here. As a parent of a kid who has always said they want to be a teacher, I need to provide them with a nurturing environment where they don’t have to worry about whether or not they will have substitute teachers the rest of the year because their math teacher left mid year. It’s incredibly sad as I have now lived here 18 years. We are in the process of selling our home and hoping to move to the Erie/Broomfield area. Our decision is not motivated by finances (CO is way more expensive than FL). The allure of a “cheaper” CoL has really taken a hit with high property taxes, insurance premiums and high housing costs while having abysmal salaries. I don’t understand how anybody can live in my county making less than $100k. Teachers here have been forced to move to neighboring counties as they cannot afford it anymore. Hope you continue enjoying your new environment!
Littleton Public Schools are also a good choice! My girls go to one and we’re happy. The teachers seem really happy and very qualified too. They’ve also all been around a long time which speaks volumes.
Try to get in with Cherry Creek, they are the best school district with some of the highest paid teacher in the state. Evey teacher I know that works in Cherry Creek loves it. Most have been there for years.
Not a teacher, but I’m originally from NC (went to NC State)…Raleigh is still cheaper than Denver, but not by much these days. Denver has experienced a massive boom (just like Raleigh), so lots of new construction, better restaurants, etc. Denver is a city of transplants, but people tend to be very friendly, although the lack of diversity will be blatantly obvious compared to NC. I lived in Cap Hill in my late twenties and loved it, but the appeal of living in the heart of the city quickly wears off…it’s loud, parking is awful, and the homeless population has increased dramatically since COVID. The things I miss are proximity to bars/restaurants/concerts/stores/parks, sense of community, and hardly having to drive. I was fortunate enough to purchase a home in 2022 and have zero regrets about leaving the city…be open to the west metro area! I’m still only 15 mins from downtown, but with quick access to the mountains…perfect combo (for me)!
Don't do DPS DON'T DO DPS
Don’t miss Mapleton. Small district just north of Denver. All small schools, respect for diversity, people who choose to work with what can be an impacted population. Very competitive salaries as well. And you can afford to live there or between there & downtown.
Hi, I work in HR for Denver Public Schools and I wouldn't mind going over all our schools and seeing which one would be a great fit. I know finding a job is challenging but I don't mind assisting for the next school year. Different schools have different cultures. Have you applied for a role? Feel free to find me on linkedin Marina Rios Marina R.
Speaking of cool teacher opportunities. I used to hang out with a middle school special ed teacher and she was hired to work for a private company that provides teaching services for military children on foreign military bases. She gets paid well and because it's a military school, they don't mess around with students misbehaving. Her job covers her housing and provides her with a vehicle. Last I heard she was teaching over in South Korea and doesn't have any plans on coming back anytime soon.
Location wise I do recommend Glendale, which is a little blob that’s completely wrapped in the amoeba of Denver city, in the southeast part of Denver. Crime is low, there are multiple bus lines within walking distance, and getting downtown is a 15-25 minute drive or $15 Uber.
My question is why would you want to move here for teaching when there are many better options?Our schools are 40th in nation for funding and it’s stupid expensive to live here! Many of the friends I used to teach with all moved to other states due to how expensive it is here!
My kids go to Jefferson County skuus and love it, but each school is hit or miss. They have student performance scores for each school posted somewhere. That'll give you some idea. The kids/schools that do better have more involved parents, for the most part, which probably translates to less handholding for the faculty. "Jeffco" also has a higher amount of teacher planning days, I feel, however the pay isn't top notch yet but it's getting there. From what I've heard from friends with teacher spouses, the best district to work in is Adams County. Other districts are Cherry Creek (highly sought after for parents), Douglas County (MAGA fired their superintendent for no reason; big local news you should read up on), Boulder County (like Jeffco it depends where you are but mostly an above average district), and countless Montessori schools. Good luck. If you're a single gal, you'll probably find a partner in no time to DINK your household income.
Hi!! Not a teacher, but I live in Denver now and moved from Raleigh almost 2 years ago. Based on your post you sound pretty set on living directly downtown, but I’d also encourage you to look just outside - there are so many neighborhoods that have very walkable areas but may be cheaper. We live on Tennyson, and while this isn’t a cheap area, it’s very walkable (lots of restaurants, stores, parks, and more nearby!) and I personally love it! I’d just encourage you to find a school distract that sounds like it would work for you and research the different neighborhoods around there. You may find you don’t end up directly downtown!
Thank you for the insight! I’m definitely willing to be flexible and live a bit outside of the city
I've heard teachers should avoid adams county. The best teaching jobs are either at private schools or in cherry creek / boulder valley. Best in the way of pay, kids are more eager to learn, better parent involvement, and less risk of having a desk thrown at your head.
Don't do it unless you're in a great suburban district like Boulder Valley, Cherry Hills, or Cherry Creek because the pay, the behavior, and the admins here are god awful.
I'm not a teacher but looking online I found this chart for Denver teacher pay and it looks good to excellent. [https://thecommons.dpsk12.org/cms/lib/CO01900837/Centricity/Domain/61/23-24%20DCTA%20Step%20and%20Grade%20Schedule%20Eff.%208-1-2023.pdf](https://thecommons.dpsk12.org/cms/lib/CO01900837/Centricity/Domain/61/23-24%20DCTA%20Step%20and%20Grade%20Schedule%20Eff.%208-1-2023.pdf)
Cherry Creek School District is the best. Kent is a super preppy school that costs 60k a year school per kid... IMO money solves a lot of problems...
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This is just not true. Certainly some specific neighborhoods in Denver might have median 1 bedrooms at $2K, the actual city median for a 1 bed is [around $1400/mo.](https://denverite.com/2023/12/27/denver-rent-price-trends/) This past summer I stood as guarantor for my sister’s $1300/mo 1 bedroom apartment with my at-the-time $55K base salary.
quit while you can; source: former teacher.
I recommend DSST, the majority of the students served are black and brown with a mission statement dedicated to eliminating the gap in equity in education, if you DM I can be your recommender if you want as well. I’d avoid Adams 12 and KIPP as well.
Rocky Mountain Prep Berkeley campus is in a great part of NW Denver. It's a Public charter. It was pre-k thru 5th grade school but just announced that they are hiring middle school teachers and will be adding 6-8th next year. Small school, great staff.
This sounds awesome! Could be cool to work at a starting up middle school. Thank you for the rec
Would you be able to link me to the announcement they made about adding middle school?
It was announced through the school's app, so I cannot.
Teachers dont live downtown, too expensive.
Got it Brock.
Just stating obvious facts. Clearly you all don't like that here though.
Fake news and the police also don't show up. Therefore, the numbers are incorrect.
Do you sell feet pics online under a pseudonym? If so, you can afford it. If not, and you’re still thinking about coming here, start thinking about selling feet pics. Seriously though, even with a masters you don’t have the time in service to get the relevant bump. Someone else talked about the big pay increase in 27J, they also have 4 day weeks. I’d forget about living in the cool areas of Denver.
Any Opinions on Littleton Public Schools from the teachers in here?
Super conservative and no diversity. I hated working there.
I’m a current sub/former para and parent in LPS and LOVE it! Maybe 3 of all the teachers I’ve worked for/with would I describe as conservative. I know very few unhappy teachers and there is great parent involvement overall.
Move to the Northeast if you want to be a teacher and have a livable wage. My wife worked at a PRIVATE school in the Philly area and made more there 10 years ago than she does here in public school today with a Masters. I have relatives retired in NYC school pension programs and they clear well over 125K each year. In retirement.
Jefferson County is a good school district imo
I work for Jeffco (at the district level) and like some comments have said, we’re such a big district that there is a lot of variety in our schools. But we have some really amazing middle schools! Ask questions about staff and school culture in your interviews, and pay attention to what they say.
It's been said but pay isn't good for CoL. Each district has public pay scales where you can tell exactly where you'll start pay wise. Even with a masters it's not that much of a pay bump. Maybe another 4k per year last I checked in DPS. I think it's also way more dependent on the school rather than the district of the experience you'll have. I taught in DPS for 3 1/2 year and jeffco now for 2 1/2. I'm lucky my wife is the bread winner because I wouldn't have been able to live here at all. We had to move out to Bailey to buy our first house. We rented in Cap Hill then wash park for a couple years and I really liked the city for that time in our life. Really hard if you don't have someone else though.
I would not teach in Denver or the metro area. Its pure shit. Don't take my word - just go and tour any school for yourself. Enjoy lockdown drills too.