Open Forum

 View Only

after school stipends and pay

  • 1.  after school stipends and pay

    Posted 03-02-2022 19:16

    First, let me say I love this email in my inbox each day.  Hearing from you, even for a two-minute-skim read when I am in a rush as I usually am, makes me feel connected and inspired.

     

    I am interested in what you, my wonderful colleagues are receiving for their after school programs.  I put up between 28 and 30 performances per year, only 7 of those being based on in-class work, the rest all after school rehearsals, and Saturdays, of course.  It adds up to between 600 and 700 hours annually.  My stipend is about $2700 per year. 

    What are your situations like?  What are the requirements of the job?  The compensation?

     

    Thanks!

    Chris Fallows

    Brentwood, CA

     



  • 2.  RE: after school stipends and pay

    Posted 03-03-2022 07:27
    Nothing, my school system will not pay theatre teachers and directors anything for extra curricular work.

    --
    Hillary Bogers, MEd
    she/her/hers
    Theatre Director
    Jack Britt High School
    910-429-2800

    Tutoring 7:45-8:21 in the morning, or by appointment

    In Cumberland County Schools we practice and require the three W's: 
    Wear a mask. Wait 6 feet from others. Wash your hands.

    This email is for the sole use of the individual for whom it is intended. If you are neither the intended recipient, nor agent responsible for delivering this email to the intended recipient, any disclosure, re-transmission, copying, or reliance on the information contained herein is prohibited. If you have received this email in error, please notify the person transmitting the correspondence immediately. All email correspondence to and from this email may be subject to disclosure to any third party upon request, including the media. It shall not be necessary to disclose: 1) Email correspondence which does not constitute a Public Record as defined under N.C.G.S. §132.1 or; 2) a public record which is exempt from disclosure under other applicable State or Federal law.





  • 3.  RE: after school stipends and pay

    Posted 03-04-2022 07:33
    In the district where I work, all extra and co-curricular stipends are posted with descriptions and the assumed number of hours. The stipends for athletics, drama, music, clubs, etc are set so the pay seems to be about $15 an hour. Of course, these descriptions and the pay level has only been raised once in my 24 years in the district (from the equivalent of $14 an hour to this). My current annual stipend for one play and one musical production is $5055. I realize that this is a lot by some other districts standards, but as it has not changed substantially in the years I've been doing it and I live in the very expensive DC suburbs, it doesn't feel like much. There were many years that that money didn't quite cover the extended day care I paid for my kids so I could work with other people's kids. That said, it is union negotiated and I'm grateful to have a strong union.

    The only stipend that is greater than mine is the Wrestling Head Coach ($5175), Football Head Coach ($5985) (and each of his 4 Assistant Coaches--$5160).

    We do not have an Assistant Director, though some of my colleagues have been pushing for one, which I think would be appropriate if I could find someone to do it with me. 





  • 4.  RE: after school stipends and pay

    Posted 03-04-2022 11:24
    No pay for Theatre teachers/directors after the school day hours. I bristle each time I hear such a statement. You are experts who work with youth in a supervised educational setting; you need payment-whether it is a yearly sum or by the show or hourly wage. This is a place that we as Arts teachers can join with the Athletic Department; hopefully they understand the number of hours that they spend after school hours. You, Theatre Director, are a 4 season coach. You need to be paid for your "coaching" expertise. 
    I am curious to hear from those who successfully established somewhat commensurate pay for after-school Theatre work. 
    Did you log every after-school Theatre work? Did you and other Arts teachers go to your district union?  Did you check with the nearby districts as to their pay scale? Did your state EdTA chapter do a survey to discover the various pay scales in the state? Did you get a district list of all after-school "coaches" pay scale? Did you volunteer to serve on the district's union negotiating team? Or at least do a presentation for your union? If you don't have a union, to whom do you talk about a pay scale? 

    We need to help those who do not get after-school pay. 



    Gai Laing Jones
    Past President of Educational Theatre Association (EdTA), National Board Member of Educational Theatre Foundation (ETF), CETA Executive Board-VP Membership, DTASC Advocacy Director, SAG/AFTRA Member
     





  • 5.  RE: after school stipends and pay

    Posted 03-04-2022 13:50
    Hi Gai!
    I became a union rep for 4 years to do just that. Unfortunately, whenever  money comes up, the union is more interested in raising the percentage for all teachers than for the few who receive stipends. All negotiations and changes move at a glacial pace. I retired before changes were made.

    ------------------------------
    Jodi Improta
    Theatre Arts Instructor
    CA
    ------------------------------



  • 6.  RE: after school stipends and pay

    Posted 03-04-2022 16:01

    Thanks, Gai.  I second your position.  And thanks to all the people who have so far responded to me outside this thread.  I understand that in many districts the "pay" for even coaches is not close to an hourly rate for an actual professional.  A starting point is to get theatre professionals on par with athletic professionals.  It is otherwise an absurd distortion of priorities.  I certainly have my preferences, but it would be hard to argue that the arts are LESS important than athletics.  So, at the outset, parity is required.  I should add that my $2605/year stipend is behind only the head football and head basketball coaches, who receive $2896, not nearly enough I think for their work either.

     

    Once that parity is acknowledged, getting your district to compensate people reasonably for their time, no matter the area of expertise is next.

     

    Which begs the question what is an appropriate amount?  I know programs are extremely varied school to school.  From a week of after-school days to finish the show a class has worked on all semester, to 25 hours a week, for 30 of the 36 weeks of the year.  In my district, we have a wide range of time commitments that reflect the lives, needs, and families of the different teachers.  As it should be.  So where in the wide range of advisors and coaches (our school has 2700 students and has a lot of stuff going on) does my program fit?

     

    I would love for people to share a truthful estimate of the time they spend annually, and description of the work they produce.

    Here is mine:

    Stipend $1794 for PAC coordinator-which means I am in charge of everything anybody does in the theatre.  Talent shows, heritage nights, leadership activities, band, choir, drumline, BSU, sppech and debate . . .  As well as outside rentals. I don't have to work all the events, but I recruit, train, schedule, and oversee any student  techs who work them.  The techs are volunteer students, though they do get paid $15/hour if the group is an outside rental.  I haven't work out the time involved here, but it is roughly 100 hours.  Maybe $18/hour.

    Stipend $2605 for Drama Director

    In brief, there are, scattered, about 35 days (7 weeks' worth) where I don't work at least 20 hours a week. In the last year before COVID, it added up to just under 700 hours.  Less than $4/hour J

     

    So, all told, 800 hours is worth $4399, $5.50/hour. 

     

    I swear, sometime soon I will start a thread about all the reasons we LOVE being theatre educators; I just am trying to build a database so that I can work with my union and admin (I am on our bargaining team) revamping how our extra-duty teachers are incentivized-I hesitate to call it paid, since I haven't made less than $10 an hour since high school in the 80's.

     

    Thanks for your help!

     

     

     

     

     

     






  • 7.  RE: after school stipends and pay

    Posted 03-06-2022 10:40
    Yikes!  We have a PAC who is salaried and receives benefits for all of the events in the auditorium.  Granted, he also does set construction, lights, and sound for our productions but it is still a huge discrepancy. 

    For my productions, I usually rehearse between 10-15 hours a week--more during the last two weeks.  I would guess that I spend the same amount of time per week doing research, planning, outreach, etc.  So a total of 20-30 hours a week for 10 weeks (fall play) and 16 weeks (musical) in addition to work I do in the summer getting ready for auditions.  Although for the musical I do not attend every vocal and dance rehearsal so it probably evens out.  With my pay of $7500/show it comes to about $30/hour.  Our production assistants (vocal director, choreographer, pit conductor, costumer, production manager) are all paid $2500/show as well.  This is pretty typical for NJ schools although our cost of living is very high being so close to NYC.  I'd still say you are grossly underpaid.  

    Best of luck as you fight for this!!!

    ------------------------------
    Laura Russo
    Teacher/Director of Theatre Arts
    Chatham High School
    NJ
    ------------------------------



  • 8.  RE: after school stipends and pay

    Posted 03-03-2022 09:19
    Hello. I do not get any pay for extra-curricular theatre at our high school. It is completely voluntary. Our middle school pays $750 stipend for the year, regardless of number of meetings or productions.

    ------------------------------
    Carmen Caldera-Brzoska
    Elizabethtown High School
    KY
    ------------------------------



  • 9.  RE: after school stipends and pay

    Posted 03-04-2022 05:15
    I get 3500 per play ( I do 2 per year). The middle school teacher gets 3000 for her play. My pay is roughly equivalent to a Varsity coach.





  • 10.  RE: after school stipends and pay

    Posted 03-03-2022 16:22
    Our extra-curricular pay is based on what "tier" our job is, and how many years of experience we have doing it. The Drama contract is in the lowest tier. i.e., every coach and assistant coach makes more than me. This year, my stipend is $4, 365 spread out over 12 paychecks. We produce 3 productions a year and (in non-pandemic years) go on 3-5 trips for festivals, professional theatrical performances, etc.

    ------------------------------
    Christopher Hamilton
    Drama Teacher
    Kamiakin High School
    WA
    ------------------------------



  • 11.  RE: after school stipends and pay

    Posted 03-04-2022 08:00
    I get 3 different Schedule B payments that equate to 10% of base salary: 3% for the Play, 4% for the Musical, 3% for being the Sponsor/Director.​

    ------------------------------
    Robert Roy
    Act2 Theatre Company
    Pinckney Community High School
    MI
    ------------------------------



  • 12.  RE: after school stipends and pay

    Posted 03-04-2022 10:47
    I am so fortunate to teach in a school district that values the arts equally to sports.  I am paid the same, if not more, than most coaches for my productions.  I receive approximately $7500 for the Fall Production, $7500 for the Spring Musical, and $2500 for our Winter Competition that I prepare the actors for.  I also have a well-paid support staff as well.  I can give you the breakdowns for that if you are interested.

    ------------------------------
    Laura Russo
    Teacher/Director of Theatre Arts
    Chatham High School
    NJ
    ------------------------------



  • 13.  RE: after school stipends and pay

    Posted 03-04-2022 10:57
    Our district pays about $2000 for a play and the same for a musical. There is no budget for productions or extra compensation for a choreographer, musical director or tech director. The fees have only been raised once in 15 years. The football coaching staff received $20,000 for a varsity coach and 6 assistants. They have the same number of kids for the same number of weeks, and they don't have to make the uniforms or build the field!

    ------------------------------
    Jodi Improta
    Theatre Arts Instructor
    CA
    ------------------------------



  • 14.  RE: after school stipends and pay

    Posted 03-04-2022 11:31
    We have a bank of "coaching" positions that we use to hire directors, designers, choreographers, etc. They range from 1500 to 2600. We also have a flex schedule, so we have practicum classes that are dedicated to the afterschool portion of our program.

    ------------------------------
    Jodi Williams
    ------------------------------



  • 15.  RE: after school stipends and pay

    Posted 03-04-2022 15:32
    I teach K-8 theatre at an arts-integration charter school, and I direct two after-school productions each year. I am also a one-person theatre department, so I do the costumes, set, etc. as well. I receive no stipend or extra pay. The sports coaches and volunteers do get stipends. The theatre teachers at the other campuses and I are hoping to get this to change someday.

    ------------------------------
    Cynthia Vodovoz
    ------------------------------



  • 16.  RE: after school stipends and pay

    Posted 03-07-2022 09:39
    Hi, Chris!

    I am the only theatre teacher at a "performing arts" high school. I get about $1000 per year extra. I teach six classes every day, two theatre I, one advanced theatre, stagecraft, and two to three public speaking classes. My theatre I classes are about 30 students each.

    I also direct, design, and produce all of our productions without support, which includes a full scale musical in my contract. I have to rehearse with cast members during my other classes while I teach because the kids do so many other things that I never have the full cast at once. I also have to do outreach, buying, and hiring for any outside help/resources. I had to learn how to play piano because no one was available to help as full-time music director. This is a small town that I just moved to this year, taking the place of a longtime theatre teacher loved by the community. I am under harsh scrutiny for everything I do and do not have the community support that she had.

    This is a bit of a rant. I work 12 hour days and 7 hours on Saturdays. Not to mention doing two jobs at once during the day and required teacher duties before and after school. Added up that would be about 62 hours a week. This has been almost every week this school year. I am also the mom of a 3 month old and first year teacher! I talked to the principal and asked for the support promised to me by the district, and she said "you knew what you were getting into when you signed your contract". That is not true. Last week I gave them my resignation letter. 

    Sometimes it's not about money. Theatre teachers, and teachers in general, are taken advantage of. This is a reminder to my fellow theatre teachers that you need to stand up for yourself. That kind of work and commitment is not sustainable. The kids cannot thrive if you don't.

    Good luck, fellow educators!

    Best,
    P.Cook

    ------------------------------
    Penny Cook
    Theatre Teacher
    Corinth High School
    MS
    ------------------------------



  • 17.  RE: after school stipends and pay

    Posted 03-07-2022 10:20
    If you all are interested, and if the forum moderators are ok with it, I started a resource facebook group for theater teachers and people in small programs. I see a lot of people in this thread who are solos in their building and we want to build resources to make the job easier. It doesn't replace a stipend, but no one should do this completely alone.

    Thanks all!

    https://www.facebook.com/groups/backstageaic

    ------------------------------
    Jodi Williams
    ------------------------------



  • 18.  RE: after school stipends and pay

    Posted 03-07-2022 15:46
    To be honest, it never would have occurred to me to expect a stipend before seeing posts like these - I just figured "doing shows" was a part of my salary. I keep thinking I should approach my principal about some kind of stipend, but I don't know what our coaches get... and I never remember to ask about it when I'm actually AT school (except for today, thanks to y'all). It sure would be nice to make a little bit extra for the evening and weekend hours. But really, I'll continue to do it for free if that is the only way these young people would be able to get the experience.

    ------------------------------
    Josh Kauffman
    Teacher, Thespian Society/Drama Club sponsor
    Winfield City Schools
    Winfield, AL
    ------------------------------



  • 19.  RE: after school stipends and pay

    Posted 03-07-2022 16:15

    I get it.  I also know that the squeaky wheel gets the grease, so advocate for yourself ½ as much as you do for your kids.  Is coaching part of your PE teachers duties?  Are they required to work after school and run sports as part of the price of being a PE teacher?  If not, then you are no different.  Certainly anything you do as a straight after school program, i.e., not an extension of one of your classes, should be treated like a tryout sport.  For example, my 6 theatre classes perform a total of 6 or 7 nights throughout the year.  I think of that as part of my job.  The plays and musicals we produce are audition-based after school programs adding another 21 performances, and that, to me, is like being the head Basketball coach, or more, really.

     

    You should be able to access the teachers' contract through your district website and/or your union if you have one.  In the contract should be any stipends that are currently being offered, usually to sports people.  Look for a stipend that you think you are equivalent to in regard to number of students supervised and in regard to the time commitment, and use that as a suggested placement.

     

    It won't adequately pay for your time-neither does the athletic stipends in most districts-but it goes a long way toward feeling valued.

     

    And, yes, I want the be there for my kids and would do it for free because I love them, but we shouldn't be taken advantage of just because they CAN take advantage of us.

     

    Get your facts together and do it!  And let me know if you need help or suggestions.

     

    Your servant,