New teaching job

This week has been a crazy, emotional week. 

Something really important happened on Tuesday. I interviewed, was offered, and accepted a job teaching 8^th grade Language Arts at Anthem School. Normally, one would be ecstatic about this type of information. I have been a bit of a wreck.

Let me back track.

At the beginning of the summer, I was contacted by a school in Deer Valley Unified School District that had an opening. They must keep their applicant files active for more than a year because I had applied there last summer. I toyed with the idea, but ultimately rejected it because I liked the school I was working in. I was going to be the assistant teacher with middle school students, working with an established teacher and a great incoming group. I was really excited about this.

When I brought this up to John, he immediately jumped on the business/rational end of it. He ran the numbers, which were deeply depressing.

John: “So you make $10/hour now, working at least 40 hours a week. Call it 42 hours a week in case of overtime, times the number of weeks in a school year (38).”

Less than $16,000.

Now I knew I did not make great money. But to hear that number, I felt worthless. I think that is below the poverty line, but I’m not going to check that fact. I got upset with him and told him I felt like he was devaluing my job. He wasn’t, but I needed to end that conversation. I agreed to at least pursue the other position.

This said position was a series of back and forth emails that died out about the time our guests arrived, since I was now occupied elsewise to care to call and find out if this principal actually wanted to interview me. During the week of our guests, I received a call from a different principal in DVUSD seeking an ELA teacher. Since it was pretty easy to return a phone call, I did. This resulted in a conversation that was going well until it came to screeching halt when she asked about my certification.

So, I scoured the whole certification process last summer. I first needed to obtain a fingerprint card through AZ, and could not even complete my application until I had the card. I had my fingerprints done in July and received them in late September. Real efficient. And since I was already working at MDS where I did not need the teaching license, I put it off. Call me lazy if you want. But the proper word would be cheap. See, I had already paid numerous fees to Ohio, Praxis, and Kentucky to obtain a piece of paper that said I was worthy to teach in said state. And those papers expire. And you have to pay more money to renew them. I was simply delaying the future renewal dates until I would actually need them. Because I didn’t need Ohio’s, and I am still a little upset with unknown BGSU education advisor who told me to get it anyway. Money flushed down the toilet.

Back to the conversation with principal. She asked if I had an Arizona license. When I told her no, I was told that she could not even interview me without seeking special permission because it was so late already. (The thought running through my head: Man! The Arizona Department of Education must be super slow.) So I hung up, found her email via the website, and forwarded a resume and cover letter with some lame note along the lines of: “If you are able to interview me, here is a resume and cover letter to review.” I wrote this school off, went back to enjoying my week with Anna and Juan, and almost forgot about it. I was a little disappointed, because I was more impressed with this school than the previous one, and I liked the sound of this principal. I pegged her as a Midwest transplant because she was super friendly on the phone. But life went on.

Fast forward to Monday afternoon. I get a voicemail from said principal, saying she has gotten permission to interview me and would like to tomorrow if possible. I returned the call and set up an interview for 10 a.m. What’s the harm in interviewing? I need to keep my skills sharp. Plus I had promised John to pursue any leads.

This turned into 7:30 a.m., so we could meet with the assistant principal as well. I gulped silently at the time, knowing full well it would be a struggle and a half, but given no real choice but to agree.

A little fudge about already sending in certification resulted in a mad dash to collect the items needed. I gathered the materials and took them directly to the UPS store after the interview to get a notarized copy and send it off.

I searched through dusty digital files to find some usable lesson plans to print off, thankful that only one had a date on it, since all of them were at least a year and a half old. Nobody is going to lesson plan if they don’t have to. Admit it.

And that was that. I printed the resume, cover letter, and lesson plans, gathered in a nice display, and called it a day. I was not going to waste valuable hours picking through Internet advice sites and old textbooks to prepare myself for this interview. I figured, if it was meant to be, it will be. Que sera sera. I only had about 12 hours anyway, and dinner and a good night’s sleep were top priority. Not to mention, figuring out if I could get away without wearing a suit jacket in the summer heat.

Tuesday morning, I arrived with 15 minutes to spare, and got to casually chat with the principal while awaiting the assistant principal. When she arrived, right on time, as the principal predicted, she reminded me of Ms. Banks, across the hall at Waite High School – same personality and even looked a little alike. I was surprised by how young both administrators were.

I was given a list of eight questions to follow along with as they asked. I really appreciated that touch – when someone asks you a three-part question, you can sometimes forget the question while you are answering, then, you have to muddle your way back to the question you think they asked. I felt like I did an average job answering their questions, and got to ask just a few questions back to them. I had more I wanted to ask, but when the principal stands and says, “It was great to meet you,” it’s not the time to keep asking. She had other interviewees waiting.

I was ready to get home and change into something cool and comfortable. About an hour after I got home, I received a call from the principal offering me the job. I had asked John the night before, “What am I supposed to do if they offer me the job on the spot?” He assured me that this would not happen; he had interviewed many, many times and never had been offered a job on the spot. This was pretty darn close, and I was a little unprepared for it. I asked for some time to discuss this offer with my husband, to which she reluctantly agreed. She was on a timeline, trying to make decisions before her vacation on Friday. I was not willing to make any decisions before coming clean with my current principal.

I made a call to Pat and asked if I could talk to her. No explanation, but she invited me to come in. I explained the situation, and she responded in the tactful way I expected. It was emotional to discuss, and endearing to hear her talk about my time at the school. I wasn’t sure about what to do when I walked in the office, but I left feeling more at peace. Maybe I just needed to make sure I wasn’t burning any bridges. She told me she knew what this conversation would be about when I called. I think she believed I had already made the decision. Maybe I had, but I wasn’t admitting it to myself.

Luckily, John was off work early on Tuesday. I met him at Paradise Bakery for lunch – an offer I knew he couldn’t resist. He loves their broccoli cheddar soup. We discussed the offer, and even though I still felt uneasy, I knew I would be dumb to turn something like that down.

Over the past few days, as I have been able to tell more people, I have become more solid in my decision. It is scary to be joining a brand new eighth grade team (all teachers will be new) and a new school environment. But if you can’t take a risk, you will only regret it. Lots of people pass up opportunities to stay in their comfort zones.  I am nervous in this new adventure, but luckily, I have a supportive husband, family, and friends. I am not facing this alone.