A Tulsa Public Schools teacher is now one of several leaving the classroom for a job in Corporate America.
"At some point you just there's nothing else to give anymore," said
Arcadia Teel, a former TPS Teacher.Teel spent 6 years with Tulsa Public Schools, but said after working two extra jobs to break even, she now had to put her family first.
Teel said she’s leaving her classroom at Booker T Washington High School for a data entry job.
She told 2 Works For You she loved her classroom and her students were like family.
For the past 18 years, Teel said she worked in rural public schools, private high school and studied abroad in Germany.
She holds 10 teaching certificates that include math, science and German.
Her departure from Booker T Washington is more than just the money.
"It's not only financial. It's just the lack of respect that this state has for its teachers and it's students,” said Teel. "It's not about Booker T anymore. It's about the fact that financially I can't do anymore. I can't work enough to make ends meet. My own family has suffered for years because I'm never at home I'm always working. My students have started to suffer…"
The Tulsa Classroom Teacher Association understands why veteran educations are also leaving for other jobs.
"They made the commitment. They put the years in. They put in the hard work and instead of being revered as experts in their field they have people coming in often with just a couple of years classroom saying,'oh no you're doing it all wrong let me tell you how you need to do it,'" said
Patti Ferguson-Palmer, President of the Tulsa Classroom Teachers Association.School starts on August 21st and Tulsa Public Schools said it’s short about 50 teachers right now.
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