Anyone who’s lived in New York City for any amount of time knows making it there requires a good amount of hustle, creativity and maybe a little luck.
That’s been the case for Ashley Alicea, who grew up in the city until her early teen years and returned in 2020.
Since then, Alicea has gone from earning about $50,000 as a preschool teacher unable to afford her own apartment to now earning $90,000 a year at a charter school, plus $55 an hour for her side hustle in mental health counseling. She’s also enjoying the stability of her own place won through the New York City housing lottery.
Now, the 33-year-old is focused on paying off her remaining $61,000 in student loans from grad school. Roughly 60% of teachers took out student loans for their education and nearly 40% have outstanding balances, on which they pay an average of $342 per month, according to a 2025 Learning Policy Institute analysis of the National Teacher and Principal Survey.
Meanwhile, about 17% of public and private school teachers reported having a second job during the school year, according to data from the National Center for Education Statistics.
