Where to go from here professionally?

I have been working about 6 years in a small non-profit firm (<100 users). I was hired as a specialist and now I'm a network admin. I basically do everything in this office that is related to tech. However, past few years COL has been vastly outpacing my raises, and despite being happy here I really have to move on if I want to keep pace. I make about 70K plus great benefits. I don't have any formal training tech or certs. I'm currently working on getting a Network+ cert (higher ups insisted it), but most of what I'm learning is completely useless IMO/IME. Most of what I do these days is focused on network monitoring/upgrades/security, including our servers. I have two people under me who do more of the desktop support side that I used to do.

I'm definitely looking to switch jobs the next year to someplace larger where I can learn more and hopefully move up in the next 5 years to a salary/position where I can afford to own a home and maybe have kids, which would require being in the low six figures. For my next job I'm hoping to start at about 10-20% more than my current salary.

I was thinking I should try to focus on a security track to build towards this goal, and move into a professional position that would allow me to work my remotely so I could live outside a major urban area.

However I'm not sure what kind of organization I should aim towards? I scored a lot of interviews at colleges/universities in the past, as my background is in academia (I have a masters in a humanities field, and spent most of my 20s pursuing a PhD). I'm kind of tempted to go that way, and maybe get a free masters, but I'm not sure if that would limit me professionally?

I would also disclaim that I'm not 'into' tech. It's not my passion, it's just something I'm good at, but generally outside the office I avoid it at all costs. I don't have a lab, and my all my devices are 3+ years old. This is a contrast I notice between myself and other IT professionals I've met over the years. It's definitely caused some small conflicts between myself and my bosses, as they kind of take the 'more is better' approach, where I am a little more focused on keeping costs down and reliability high by avoiding the bells and whistles. (Biggest conflict reticently was a push to 10Gig switches... which my workplace does not need, and probably won't for another 10+ years.)

Any opinions or perspective are appreciated. Thanks!