Chicago Public Schools / John Cook School / Teacher Assistant
Job-title file
Plan and deliver instruction, assess student progress, and develop curriculum.
3 employees hold this title in John Cook School. Median total compensation for the role is $62,328, below the department median of $103,838.
Compared with the local labor market
Across all employers in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN area, the median wage for Teaching Assistants, Except Postsecondary — about 46,770 people — is $37,840. John Cook School pays a median base salary of $45,661 for this role, 21% above that figure — about the 73rd percentile of local pay for the occupation.
The bar is the range of annual wages for Teaching Assistants, Except Postsecondary across every employer in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN area, from the 10th to the 90th percentile, with the middle 50% highlighted. The marker shows John Cook School’s median base salary for this role. Both figures are base pay only.
And across the country
Nationwide, the median wage for Teaching Assistants, Except Postsecondary — about 1,420,350 people — is $36,780. John Cook School’s median base salary is 24% above that national figure, about the 76th percentile of pay for the occupation nationally.
Local and national wages differ for reasons beyond how well a job pays — cost of living, the mix of employers, and local demand for the occupation all move the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN range relative to the national one.
Median total compensation for this role at John Cook School is $62,328, which includes overtime and employer-paid benefits. The benchmark above excludes both, so total compensation is deliberately not compared against it.
Benchmark: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2025). BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) covers all employers in the area — private, non-profit, and government alike — so this is a comparison against the whole local labor market for the occupation, not against private-sector pay. OEWS wages are straight-time pay and exclude overtime, shift differentials, and employer-paid benefits, so the government figure shown here is base pay on the same basis. Total compensation is not comparable to it. Job titles are matched to the closest standard occupation, so the comparison is between similar work rather than an identical job classification.
Compare departments
Teacher Assistant is held in 324 Chicago Public Schools departments. In John Cook School, the median of $62,328 ranks #251 of 324.
Median total compensation for the Teacher Assistant role in other Chicago Public Schoolsdepartments (highest first). Each bar links to that department’s page for this role.
Compare jurisdictions
This role is reported in 4 jurisdictions. In Chicago Public Schools, the median of $67,753 ranks #1 of 4. See Teacher Assistant across all of Chicago Public Schools →
Median total compensation for comparable Teacher Assistantroles in other jurisdictions. Titles are matched by normalized name across sources, not identical job classification, and pay is not cost-of-living adjusted. Each bar links to that jurisdiction’s page for the role.
Record list
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Teacher Assistant/John Cook School
Source-specific fields
Carrie Watterson works as a Teacher Assistant for John Cook School. Carrie earned $66,367 in 2026.
Teacher Assistant/John Cook School
Source-specific fields
Tyler White is a Teacher Assistant at John Cook School. 2026 total compensation came to $62,328.
Teacher Assistant/John Cook School
Source-specific fields
Timothy Le Cour holds the role of Teacher Assistant at John Cook School. In 2026, their total compensation was $62,328.