The Big Adventure Into Higher-Ed

This summer I made the leap from public education to a private Midwest college. I hope to highlight and document the differences in finances and benefits as the year goes on.

Like so many teachers this past year I have also chosen to leave the traditional high school classroom (mainly). Many factors lead to this change. Struggling infrastructure, lack of respect from students and adults, a corroding benefits package, and uncertainty of being able to keep grinding for 30 more years as a public school teacher pushed me to switch gears into higher-ed. Higher-ed still has it’s problems and in many ways is also not currently sustainable but it was time to see what that world is like. I just wish I could bring my colleagues and students with me.

Things I did when I left my public education job

1. DO NOT TOUCH THAT PENSION!
2. Left my 403b account alone
3. Monitor my Spending

PENSION – Don’t touch it. It might be tempting to withdraw your contributions for some short term cash. Don’t do it. With 10 years of service I am vested in my state’s retirement and if I never contribute again I’ll be eligible for $4,000+ a year. Might not seem like a lot but with COLA once I start collecting that will be a decent little chunk of money coming in each year. And that’s guaranteed income.

403b – My new employer uses a difference group for 403b (Thankfully they still offer vanguard funds) so I’ll be opening a new 403b account. That’ll be my 3rd 403b… It seems like a lot but after listening to everything the professor went through I’m not too eager to try to roll one into another.

Monitor Spending – My days of building intricate full blown budgets might be over but with an impending paycut I am paying attention to where I’m spending my money. I’ll have to cut back in some areas I’m sure, I am just trying to identify these areas before they become a problem.

Those have been my immediate steps as I anticipate a career change. There have been others, including selling my house! I’ll be covering some of those more directly as the year goes on.

I am hoping to provide all of you some insight into the benefits and costs of the world of higher-ed to see if that’s a viable career path for you to consider. Best of luck and god-speed to teachers at the start of this upcoming school year. I hope there are positive changes on the way.

Keep Stackin!