Blog

Note - Tom Mellish, who has served as Executive Director since 2015, is retiring following a long career as an educator and then as IRTA's leader.

Retirement is an exciting time – a great anticipation of well-earned “me time”. You have spent decades working for others and serving your profession.

You deserve this chance to focus on what really makes you happy the rest of your life.

However, retirement can be a greater challenge than expected - especially mentally.

You have decided to pay it forward.

Maybe you felt a void in your life after retiring and need a sense of purpose. Maybe you want to make your community a better place to live, work or play.

Whatever your reason, volunteering your time can be a personally fulfilling experience.

If you're a teacher thinking about when you should retire, you have a lot to consider. 

In this post we will cover the essentials to help you determine when to retire from teaching. It is our hope that this guide will provide you with an overview of the procedures of the Indiana State Teacher's Retirement Fund (ISTRF), as well as the personal and emotional considerations involved.

The Indiana Retired Teachers Association is committed to assisting active educators in making informed retirement decisions. The Association works to protect retirement benefits and to improve retirement benefits of all retired teachers.

Read our in-depth guide: Retirement Guide for Indiana Teachers

Let's face it. You deserve every nickel earned in your career.

Besides the time spent in the classroom, you also have worked countless hours writing lesson plans, grading papers and working with parents - even on your nights and weekends.

So, why not reward yourself by saving your well-deserved pension or salary whenever and wherever possible?

Here are eight ways to help your cash flow, especially in retirement or as you prepare for it.

Spending time with your grandchildren is always a delight, but as they grow older, they take a little more effort to entertain.

If you don’t have something planned for them, they will end up zoning out in front of the television while your hours slip away. However, by the time you reach your senior years, it is important to keep your safety -- and the little ones’ -- in mind.

Practical skills like classroom management and positive behavior strategies are vitally important tools in a teacher's toolkit. Most of these skills are learned on the job, rather than in the university classroom, so inexperienced teachers often struggle with creating a positive environment in their classrooms.

Why is classroom management important, and how does it affect student learning? Let's explore this issue together.

When leaves begin turning colors and the air turns cool most of us begin to think of cider, pumpkins, family gatherings and upcoming holidays.

For the financially savvy, fall signals the time of year to make sure we have taken advantage of every opportunity to save for the long winter of retirement and accumulate some tax breaks to use when the spring thaw arrives in April.

These are five opportunities to take advantage of before December 31 or risk waiting till next year.

Many of you will be heading out for the holidays or going south or west as a snowbird during the cold weather months.

You should take a little precaution to protect your home during your absence. Here are a few tips to help deter burglars and make your home look occupied: