elementary school teacher

high school teacher

learning specialist

school teacher

teacher

Prospect Schools

I worked here for about 2 and a half years. I was thrilled to get a job having searched for one for a while. The first couple of weeks were fairly challenging having to learn the ropes and all the tasks I was responsible for but I eventually got the hang of it I served breakfast to kids in the morning after having prepared what I could the day before and finishing it up the next morning. I served lunch to the kids as well which I also set up. I discovered I actually liked working around kids which really surprised me because I didn't think I would like it. I liked the people I worked with so I was definitely content with the job. But after about a year, I began to tire of doing the same thing day in day out. I stayed simply because I couldn't find anything else at the time and I needed some income. I began to see some downsides to the job at that time. I saw that there was no opportunity for me to move up and do something else within the school so as a result I felt really trapped because I was staying stagnant doing the same thing. Even with those negatives, I got to experience what it was like to work in a positive work environment and how to get along with co-workers as well as how to budget out my paychecks seeing as they weren't a ton of money and for those things I am very appreciative and I am thankful for my time there. On my last day, I was sad to leave even though it was something I wanted because I really did learn a lot there and grew to really like my co-workers as well so overall I do think it is a good place to work. I think that says something about a place when you are sad to leave it even though its the right thing for you. It means its a good place to work because if its not then you wouldn't feel bad about leaving there. Thats all I have to say. I know this is a little long but I wanted to give my full honest opinion and I think I've done that.

This school manages to hire fantastic teachers.  The supervisory regime is excessive and demoralizing.  I have to meet with my supervisor once every two weeks.  It's not high-leverage when I need the time to plan and grade.  Rather than mentoring, it's a "gotcha" system trying to look for ways to grade you down on your reviews.  I think they are trying to keep you on your toes but it's a negative environment.  Some supervisors are better and don't emphasize the negative aspects as much.  The admin doesn't have enough to do (bloated central admin) so teachers are targets.  I have so many masters for different admins' pet projects (I have my supervisor and I'm beholden to the person who wrote the advisory curriculum and I'm beholden to the network director in my area who all ask for over-the-top documentation of what I'm doing).  All of it adds up to 60+ hours a week that's not serving students.  Meetings are excessive and mostly useless.  By the way, I am a person who loves teaching and loves kids.  Just wish I had more time to teach and focus on students.

Principal and coaches lead a toxic culture of power that truly serves nobody but themselves.
Principal and coaches are defensive when confronted with conflict or simply asked for clarity. There is no accountability for mistakes, no humility. They seek to protect the power as it exists rather than to facilitate the best out of each person. Criticism of those in power is viewed as threatening and inappropriate.  They just are clearly not trained on how to coach teachers and it’s literally what they are paid to do, which I find baffling. They are also entirely unable to authentically receive feedback themselves. 
There is also a toxic culture of perfection.  Mistakes are seen as personal - they reflect badly on the person making them as opposed to being seen for what they are - mistakes. School leaders and coaches are just as ill-equipped to facilitate restorative conversations. 

At Prospect they never stopped preaching the “good word,” yet the gap between what was said to teachers and middle management and what actually happened was almost laughable. I regularly encountered xenophobia from some teachers—supervisors, in fact—as well as from many students, and I also saw ageism quietly encouraged within the community.
By the time I quit, it felt like I couldn’t sneeze without someone telling me the “correct” way to do it, while the day-to-day culture around me was nothing short of chaos.
There are some excellent teachers there—the ones who aren’t busy telling you how amazing they are, but simply getting on with the job. There are some great students, too. Unfortunately, the chronic lack of follow-through on disciplinary issues only fuels the disorder.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Staff was able to dress down daily (jeans, leggings, sneakers)

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Behavior management, lack of support, no school based leadership aside from the principal and three deans of culture (behavior)

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
The team was very stand-off ish. They did not embrace me. I was one of few instructional black staff members. 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
There were many opportunities for me to prep my lessons during the day. I had an advisory in the morning,  and three classes during the day. The other hours were for prep, lunch and meetings.

The mission sounds great until you actually work towards it; then you realize it's just like every other toxic charter school network except with more buzzwords about DEI and less pay. The network has begun its descent toward becoming another place that commits to taking the joy out of education and treating children like humans that need to be policed. 

What is the best part of working at the company?
Growth opportunity and onboarding experience is top notch.  Staff is caring and supportive. 

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Overall I would contest that the end of the day can vary for ie; gathering Scholars to their respectful placement for dismissal/pick-up. 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
The Culture is diverse and well organized.  The Company maintains a strict policy of ensuring arrival for your shift is on time. 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Greeting Scholars/Parents.  Interaction with staff and enjoying transition in between schedule.

Just like any charter school, the culture that once made this place so great gets sucked out of it with every new hire. Long standing staff have no value if they are not bending over backwards to go above and beyond (for a life, pay, & benefits that are not worth it btw).  We were expected to stay beyond our work hours to get unreasonable amounts of work done. What used to be a team of 5+ not gets stuffed to only a few. Education is a mess as it is, and when you throw money hungry vultures into the mix, it only gets worse. Horrible decisions made in terms of management, and internal promotion is nepotism. 

This organization totally corrupt.  They are deeply unethical and treat their staff very very poorly.  My experience as a person of color is that routinely my manager would say racist and sexist things about staff.  I was popular on staff and with my manager so I was never the victim but this organization has a serious problem with rampant racism and sexism especially with their managers.  I would never work here again.  I was grateful to get a job at another charter network and while it has challenges at least the people are inspiring.

I would not recommend applying. In my experience, there were significant concerns regarding workplace culture, leadership, and employee treatment. Staff members often felt undervalued, and there appeared to be inconsistent support from management. Employees who expressed differing viewpoints or raised concerns did not always feel heard or respected. I believe there are other charter schools that provide a more positive, supportive, and professional work environment.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Elementary school teacher 9 salaries reported	$89,475 per year
High school teacher 5 salaries reported	$85,478 per year
Learning specialist 3 salaries reported	$85,478 per year
School teacher 3 salaries reported	$85,478 per year
Teacher 3 salaries reported	$86,652 per year

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