What is Run's House?
Webexplorer is my brother? How did you know that? 
I lived in CT, RI, and NJ, so I know about the Northeast.
Certified terp for public high school in SC earns $12 - $15 per hour, 40-hour week, 9 months (180 days) of the year. If the average is $13.50 per hour, that would be less than $20,000 per year.
I'm a community independent contractor terp. I earn more per hour than a school terp but I work much fewer hours, and I get no benefits (no insurance, no retirement, no sick leave, no paid vacation, etc.) . Sometimes I have no work for weeks. Sometimes I work two hours per week. So, I'm not getting rich. I spend several hundreds of dollars each year for terp workshops, professional membership fees, training materials, testing, etc.
But I love my work and I enjoy the people I work with. 
Life's too short for too much seriousness. :P