Teachers at Harlem Success Charter School had just completed three weeks of intense professional development this past Friday when the school's executive director, former NYC Councilwoman Eva Moskowitz, offered up the kind of professional gratitude that is rare in the world of public education. During an out-of-school appreciation lunch for their summer professional development work, Moskowitz informed the school's teaching staff that the school had arranged for each of them to get a free one-hour massage at Equinox Fitness Clubs.

Moskowitz said she and her team felt that the massages were an important way to show that teacher quality and morale were the most important factors in predicting whether the new charter school will be successful. She said she appreciated how seriously they all took their summer team-building session and that it also was a way to make clear the school's concerns about the teachers' well being.

"We know what extraordinary hard work it is to be an exemplary teacher and we thought massages expressed our desire to put their working conditions and well-being front and center," Moskowitz said. The PD sessions, held at Hunter College, included training in Success For All and motivational/pedagogical speeches from folks like Rafe Esquith.

Teachers at Harlem Success, who were urged to relax for the next few weeks before students arrive for classes Aug. 21, as a rule earn at least $5,000 above the salary scale of the city's public schools. For the 12 teaching positions at the school this fall, the school received a mind-boggling 1,500 teacher applications.

In terms of the question that I posed on Friday, namely whether or not there are better ways to bring respect to the teaching profession other than old-school collective bargaining, many people believe the answer is right in front of us.

Harlem Success certainly isn't alone in finding new ways to recognize the professional efforts of its hard working teachers. At Brooklyn's Leadership Prep Charter School, founder and head of school Max Koltuv is on the lookout for donations of used exercise equipment (tread mills, elliptical trainers, stationary bikes, rowing machines, weights, etc.) so they can build an on-site fitness center for the school's teachers. "Consulting firms and banks do it, why not us?" Koltuv said in an email seeking donations. "Our teachers are going to be working very hard to ensure that our students succeed. We want to help them keep themselves healthy and energized by having a exercise room for them to use on site." (Leadership Prep also offers starting salaries that are at least 10% higher than what NYC Department of Education teachers earn.)

In addition to paying more than the NYC public schools, Harlem Success, Achievement First Charter Schools, Village Academies, and Leadership Prep (part of the Uncommon Schools network) and many, many others also give each teacher a laptop, cell phone, voicemail, an adequate supply of textbooks!!!, and unlimited use of the photocopier!!!! All of these schools proudly advertise the fact that the work will be hard, but that teachers' professional efforts will be supported. At the Bronx Lighthouse Charter School, in addition to competitive pay and benefits, teachers participate in a bonus plan.

At Explore Charter School in Brooklyn, teachers also get business cards, cell phones, and the ability to design their own professional development plans to refine and improve their pedagogy. Because the school's founders recognize that the workload can be intense, they designed a school calendar that provides a break every eight weeks. And they have democratic voice, as professionals. From the school's web site:

"Teachers are encouraged to participate and lead school task forces that shape our instructional curriculum and school culture. Over the past year, teachers made critical decisions to define our mathematics curriculum, create our instructional frameworks, implement a new behavioral system and revise academic standards. Feedback through staff surveys and informal check-ins is respected and acted upon and teachers play an active role in the PTA."

KIPP schools in New York City also advertise professional "teamwork" to prospective teachers. According to their web site: "You'll be working alongside a team of people who believe in the same things you do, who will be working just as hard as you do, and will be trying to get better every day... And you'll be making more money as well."

Some critics may dismiss these pay raises and individual teacher-appreciation and teamwork gestures as mere gimmicks. Taken alone, they may be. But put together, they often become part of a larger effort to recognize the professional value that classroom teachers provide to successful charter schools. It's why people like this, and this choose to work where they do.

Click through this high-quality brochure ("Designed for Teachers") that Deborah Kenny at Village Academies put together for prospective teachers. Do you get the impression the teachers there don't even need "Teacher Appreciation Night" to understand that their talents are highly valued?

So, how do you show your teachers that their hard work is appreciated? Drop us a line at TheChalkboard@nycsa.org.

By the way, you can contact Max at the school here if you can help out with the exercise equipment.