bus driver

nutrition assistant

assistant

instructional assistant

custodian

Buncombe County Schools

As each day began students came in and were greeted with big hugs,they turned in folders to me as they unpacked (re-pack for the take home process) for a busy day, making lunch choices (I later counted, reported and turned in). Communications with parents as well as making phone calls to all who need help or re-direction in sending home process at the end of the day or any other needs. Morning work help and behavior modifications implemented, pencils to re-sharpen etc. Some days even consisted of car duty (no matter the weather). After the 8:00 bell rings, morning work checked and gone over with students and reports delivered to office and lunchroom. Students went to their specials and were then picked up 30 minutes later, during that time there were papers to copy daily plans (materials to gather ets). As students return to class we did our math groups(30 minutes), there we learned math taken from the NC Standard Course Of Study. Straight on to Reading 30 minutes. Then to lunch, where you monitored students, serving them in line reminder of milk, fork, napkin and then each student reminded of how many choices they are allowed to have. Taking them to their seats then opening items that are to hard for them to open. After all that you finally sit down and have maybe  minutes to eat with them. You then take them to empty their trash and clean after them while the teacher takes them back to class. After returning to class you teach a small reading group lesson with 6+ students who are expected to be on grade level by mid-year. Out to play, monitoring and re-directing behaviors constantly. Taking students back to class to fix all the boo boos, call parents (as needed) etc. Science/ Social Studies 30 minutes, math count of the day and pack for home. Monitor students in line during car and bus going home duties daily, caring for all their needs. When they are gone home. Personal Student files completely taken care of by myself, personal documents to gather from parents, field trip notes to type and send etc. Many hats worn over the past  years. I learned so much from EACH student, parent and co-worker. The best part
of my job!!! I loved my job! 

The State Of North Carolina no longer was taking care of it's employees, over the past  years my pay was cut by $5000. and I was in jeopardy of loosing my retirement and insurance and with a pre-exhisting condition I felt forced to go on and retire early. The hardest part of my job was leaving!
I am now looking for a position for the next 12-17 years.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Being a teacher and helping children reach their potential.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Everything about teaching is difficult. Full accountability and very little support from administrators to the majority of parents. After having worked in another state for over a decade with a very successful record, working for Buncombe Co Schools comes down to a not what you know but who you know system. There are “coaches” who don’t understand what the word means and how they get in to their posts is again a “who you know” proposition. When you actually ask for help, you receive none. If you do get the opportunity to ask a specific question you realize they don’t know any more than you do. And the school board members themselves are just a “club” cow towing to their longtime buddies without looking at the factual information available. This is the worst system I’ve ever had the misfortune to work for, not only in the field of education, but other varied fields as well.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Working with peers can be rewarding and helpful. I have found that anyone above the teaching level has completely forgotten what it means to be the teacher. Although every worker has to answer to someone, it’s the teachers who have to answer to everyone and get the least support in doing so.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
DAY?
Teachers work extremely long days with very little left for personal time. They also end up working during the precious little personal time that may have left.
You cannot ex-lain what “real world” teaching is actually like. Education students read all the books on what the daily routine will be and how to best handle various situations; but, nothing prepares anyone for what teaching really requires and how the difficult situations are worse than you could ever have imagined.

What is the best part of working at the company?
The people , students, teachers, but pay is not good and work load is a lot for the pay not to mention the fact that there is no respect for custodial work in the schools

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Not enough pay and no respect for the things you do,  the students are very destructive with almost everything so as1 class to another a custodian it is really tiring some days just for it to be all messed up when the bell rings from one class change to another, spills drinks, graffiti just over all depressing some days

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
It's hectic some days just with the daily grind then you have all the things that just pop up anytime that has to be done whether or not you have the time

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
I come in and start my day in a set of bathrooms, cleaning toilets, sinks, urinals, from there its on to my classrooms that I clean, dust mop, sweep, vacum, pull trash in all these areas then at lunch there are 4 30 min lunches, you wipe tables between lunches, and mop up spills , sweep up any foods, trash on floors, dust mop hallways which u only have 4 minutes to wipe them before the next group

I think that substitute teachers could serve a valuable role within the public schools.  Public school students have spent a good deal of time with substitute teachers over recent years.  It would be in the interests of the schools to cultivate substitutes who can teach and guide behavior so that the students have continuous educational experiences.  I think that there's an element of popularity and subjectivity in terms of the school's preferences for individual substitutes.  There wasn't much communication of substance with substitute teachers.   It's not a job that brings validation from other teachers or school administration.  If you want to be a substitute teacher at BCS, do it on your own terms and for your own reasons.  My feeling is that it's not a good job for people  who consider themselves to be educators.  It's not a merit-based job, and it's not really a teaching job.  

A typical day at work involved me cleaning 13+  1000sq ft classrooms, 3+ bathrooms, several thousand square feet of hallway, and several smaller office spaces as well as maintain the outdoor campus (trimming bushes, weeding garden beds, etc.)

The only thing I learned in my time as a custodian was how to operate floor cleaning machinery.

The county as a whole seems very overmanaged, too many generals not enough soldiers.

Culture was lacking as a custodian, every thank you I received felt hollow and no conversation I had with anyone other than another custodian had any substance.

The hardest part of my job was cleaning all of the listed spaces to a good standard as I was for a while the only custodian at the location.

The most enjoyable part of the job is work hours being Mon-Fri and having holidays off.

Teachers have an impossible job and non-departmentalized elementary level teachers have it the worst. 40 minutes of planning time is nowhere near enough to lesson plan for 3 different mandated curricula, prepare materials, reflect/grade, communicate with parents, attend meetings, and do the myriad of other tasks placed on teachers daily. And it was frustrating to have that planning time taken away regularly due to no subs or IEP/PLC/grade level meetings. The system as a whole is broken, but I will say it is AWESOME that K-1 teachers have full time assistants. If you are lucky enough to be in a building with a competent leader who listens and wants to make teachers better, consider yourself lucky! No one wanted to solve problems and better the academics of students at the school I worked at. 

In general: understaffed, underfunded, everyone is overworked/underpaid. Admin is stretched way too thin for both staff issues and disciplinary/parent issues with students. A SHOCKING lack of diversity among staff and admin. Everyone's doing their best and everyone is nice enough to get through the day with, but it's very stressful, especially in positions with no mobility. They know you're stuck there so they don't listen to concerns. Great benefits, if you don't have to cover anyone else. Within the schools everyone feels that the County and the State don't care about us at all, and it can wear you down. 

I had a very positive experience working with Buncombe County Schools. The colleagues were supportive, collaborative, and genuinely cared about both students and each other. The student body was engaged and rewarding to work with, which made the day-to-day experience meaningful.

Administration was generally organized and functional, though like most school systems, there were occasional areas where communication and support could have been stronger. That said, the overall environment was professional and focused on student success.

I would absolutely consider working there again and would recommend Buncombe County Schools to others looking for a solid, community-oriented educational environment.

Working as a teacher assistant has been a rewarding experience. Assisting in the classroom allows me to support students' learning and development while gaining valuable insights into the teaching profession. Collaborating with teachers to create engaging lesson plans and providing one-on-one support to students has been fulfilling. However, the role also requires patience, flexibility, and the ability to adapt to the needs of diverse learners. Overall, being a teacher assistant has been both challenging and fulfilling, and I'm grateful for the opportunity to contribute to students' academic journey.

I love working with the kids and experiencing learning through their eyes. It has been a rewarding experience and it fit with my personal situation perfectly when my daughter was younger. I have worked with some terrific people over the years at different schools. Budget cuts have made it harder to feel secure in the job lately and has taken away a lot of advancement opportunities. You do have to be flexible in this job, because things change daily and sometimes from minute to minute!

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Bus driver 108 salaries reported	$21.89 per hour
Nutrition assistant 77 salaries reported	$21.32 per hour
Assistant 102 salaries reported	$20.67 per hour
Instructional assistant 65 salaries reported	$20.70 per hour
Custodian 49 salaries reported	$20.32 per hour

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