teacher

assistant

custodian

support associate

mathematics teacher

Cumberland-County-Schools

My position in Cumberland County as a high school Social Studies Teacher taught me perseverance, how to teach under extreme pressure and unwarranted scrutiny, as well as how to thrive under extreme pressure and prejudice. As I have taught in other states around this country, I would NOT recommend working for Cumberland County Schools. The county is so large that real problems which affect students are not addressed in any timely manner, that is if they are addressed at all. A typical day at work involved being berated via emails throughout the day from the administration for something another faculty member may have done, but all faculty were treated as guilty; each class period interrupted via announcements over the intercom for last minute meetings, students being yelled, yes yelled, to get to class on time (when they were already in class) and other issues, teachers being yelled/scolded at for grade system problems encountered as well as other various "offenses", mismanagement of administrator time lead to mismanagement of teacher and students time. There were interruptions throughout the day, and typically at the end of the school day the faculty was made to attend last minute meetings in the cafeteria, in which the administration wold hold you without explanation for an undetermined amount of time. The best part of the job was working with underprivileged students; seeing them ready for class each day despite the disorganization and berating the administration gave the students and faculty. The students were always ready to learn and eager, the minute they saw you leading in the classroom, they followed. The teachers I worked with were also great leaders in their classrooms and were quite enjoyable and very knowledgeable when it came to their subjects. The county as a whole did not address schools specific problems as there are so many schools in the large county that the time to properly address issues was not "available" as many faculty members across the county were told via the superintendents office. If you desire a position that is an EXTREME challenge then I encourage you to work within Cumberland County Schools. 

A typical workday for me begins at 6:30 AM, which is about one hour before I teach class.  During this hour, I review the lessons that I have created for the day, coordinate for any additional requirements and make final preparations.  My classes start at 7:30 AM and I am immersed in teaching, coaching, and mentoring for the remainder of the day.  After school, I attend meetings three days a week.  We have a weekly faculty meeting and team planning meetings twice each week.  I work on a four-person team.  My co-workers and I coordinate our common curriculum, schedule and host parent conferences, and share best practices during these meetings.   

Education provides intrinsic rewards, which is why most teachers stay in the profession. The best part of the job is witnessing a student as he/she grasps a concept.  It is also rewarding to know that I might be a light in a child's day. Teachers are truly the salt of the earth and the hardest workers I know.  My co-workers and I easily put ten to eleven hours a day working. The perception that teaching is an easy job is false.  Being a teacher requires salesmanship, organization, strategic  planning, teamwork, negotiation, and data analysis. All of these skills are required in major corporations in America. I honed this skill set in the medical sales and pharmaceutical sales industry over 10 years and have applied it to my teaching.  

The most discouraging part of the teaching profession is that job security is no longer one of the perks that accompany the job description.  Budgets are being cut and lay-offs promised.  Student to teacher ratios are increasing from 28:1 to 40:1 so the county can save money by eliminating salaries.  Teachers that are lucky enough to keep their job are doing so with the guarantee that there will be no annual pay raises for several years.

*A typical day at work would be to sign-in, and check my mail box for messages. Go to my office log in to my computer and open up my email to check for other messages. Next I would look at my to do list for the day. My day changes per whats on my calendar for the week or if it's a payday week. Things periodically come up because I am in charge of a lot of responsibilities that need my attention. I make myself available to handle situations as they arrive. If it's my pay schedule week I process each payroll accordingly to meet my deadlines. Payroll usually takes up over half of the day to key, check and deliver time sheets to the payroll office.

*I have learned that things sometime happen unexpectedly and sometimes you have to go with the flow. Don't get over whelmed, calmly handle things professionally and in a timely manner.

*Management-treat everyone with the same amount of respect as you want to receive. I find it rewarding for people under my authority  to know that I am willing to do anything that I am asking them to do. Communication is the key to a successful team.

*Co-workers - I believe in working together hand  in hand to get the job done. Teamwork!

*The hardest part and the most enjoyable part go together because I love what I do and I believing in getting the job done correctly. If that means working overtime to make that happen then that 's what has to be done. I believe in giving 110%.

Clean and care for buildings and facilities in order to ensure they are maintained in a safe and healthy manner
Main Activities:  

Clean offices, meeting chambers and recreational facilities. Mop tile and concrete floor areas. Vacuum all carpeted areas. Dust all furniture and fixtures as required. Wash and disinfect all washroom floors, toilets, toilet seats, hand dryers and fixtures. Clean all mirrors Replenish toilet tissue and soap as needed. Empty all waste baskets and garbage cans. Place garbage in outside storage bin. Clean entrance and exit including glass, doors and hardware. Keep outside area near exit and entrance clear of snow, cans, paper, etc.  Clean, wash and disinfect drinking fountains. Wash all finger marks from walls, doors, hardware and glass. Perform and/or report minor maintenance repairs. Clean kitchen sinks and counters. Report damages and acts of vandalism. Wash and buff floors with floor polisher. Wash entrance and exit floors. Spot clean walls and toilet partitions. Enjoyed working with my co-workers. We'll worked as one. I must say we did not have the best management team. The hardest part of my job was keeping, well I didn't find anything hard about my job. The enjoyable part about my job is working with my co-workers.

This place had the worst management possible. The job itself was based on women sitting in a office, who never wanted to come to the school when you need help, they practically wanted you to come to the office; which was located on the other side of town, and do handle business instead of them coming directly to you at the school, which is what they were supposed to do. 
The pay was okay, yet they could have given more. 
The hours were kept  under 40, so normally you would work 36-38 hours, especially when the kids were out of school, which in my opinion they could have just made you full time if you work over 32 hours. They would normally call you and tell you to hurry up if you got to close to 40 on your monthly time log. 
Another downside is you only get paid once a month, so you definitely have to budget your money the right way. 
Lastly they had extreme issues with you taking days off, even if you had days saved up, regardless of how important it was. 
Other than those downers the great part about it is that you become a home away from home for children. They build great relationship with you, and you become a role model. 
The training that comes with the job is exceptional! It gave me plenty of great tips when it came time for me to send my little one to school.

When you walk in the door feels like life is being sucked out of you from beginning of day until the end. You are responsible for multiple VERY IMPORTANT responsibilities and that's fine but micromanaging on top of that creates an anxious environment. The principal will make or break the atmosphere of these schools and CCS has some principals who people don't like to work for. Sime principals treat employees like personal assistants and have them doing things thats outside of ccs requirements. And there seems to be no accountability with them. Thats a problem. You can't really complete tasks when you are pulled in so many directions...multitasking only works to a degree, like you can't be in more than one place at a time and still accomplish all deadlines and what's required of you.

Typical day at work involves reading emails that are time sensitive and require action. You learn to strive to prioritize your time and work load as best you can which can be very difficult  at times. The workplace culture needs to improve -- especially if you work for a Principal who has a tendency to micromanage. Coping with frequent disruptions and distractions is hard to adjust to if you are used to working in a tranquil environment. The most enjoyable part of the job was developing good relationships with a few employees who you could trust and relate to in a positive way.

A typical day at Sherwood Park Elementary began at school began with monitoring students as they made their way to classrooms. I then split my time between two first grade classrooms. In that time I pulled small groups of students for remediation and monitored behavior and lessons. At times I was asked to step into other classrooms to help with behavior issues, or to cover for an unavailable teachers. 
   The hardest and most enjoyable parts of the job where the same. Interactions with the students could be the most rewarding thing about the job, or the most stressful part of the day. 
   The principal and teachers at the school where professional and some of the most dedicated people I could ever hope to work with. Their main focus of the staff was the development and well being of the students. 

In my position as a Substitute teacher I worked at several different schools, the staffs varied as much as the schools themselves.

As a school social worker you are paid on the teachers scale and there is no room for advancement. If you obtain your masters degree you do not get to reap the benefits of pay increase like the counselors do. School social workers are sometimes undervalued and often unrecognized for the behind scenes work they do with students and parents. Working on attendance and truancy is unrealistic and seem more of an attendance clerk role. You are often thrown into situations of transporting students when it has been mentioned in meetings that we are not insured to transport students. Mixed messages are always given in staff meetings with student support and you are often left to figure things out on your own. Depending on your principal you can have a great supportive leader and be underpaid or have a terrible leader and be underpaid.


First of all, training and orientation to my job was horrible. I was expected to fine out how to use the outdated computer based system on my own. Management was not supportive at all for contract workers. When I reported issues to my company I was put in an uncomfortable position because I followed my company’s protocol. Needless to say I didn’t finish my contract. But, on the good side, the teachers were great, for the most part the kids were great. That’s why I do what I do. I took issue with the state practice regulations of my profession in a way that I felt like I could not practice what I was taught. All I could do was teach the teachers how to do my job. Which I thought was wrong on so many levels. I would not ever go back to the state of North Carolina just because of the practice laws, much less to the school.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Teacher 1165 salaries reported	$4,278 per month
Assistant 714 salaries reported	$2,574 per month
Custodian 252 salaries reported	$2,722 per month
Support associate 201 salaries reported	$2,692 per month
Mathematics teacher 133 salaries reported	$4,303 per month

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