Throwing around an idea...

Ya know... last night as I laid in bed attempting to fall asleep, I had this thought that kept creeping into my head. The school district that I'm a product of (the same one that the HR dept. advertises "Prefers to hire back their graduates") has continually screwed me... for 3 school years straight.

I don't know if I've elaborated much on this... but for as long as I've been in contact with the HR dept. they have always said they prefer to hire back products of the district as teachers. Now, when I was student teaching I thought the concept of this was GREAT!!! I figured it'd be no issue to get a job. And of course we all know how horribly wrong I was to ever think it would be easy to get a teaching job. Unfortunately, I have had the horrible misfortune to come across several people FINALLY getting their first teaching jobs in my "home" district. 3 cases, to be exact. One was a girl I student taught with (she student taught on the same campus, different grade level) and she fell into a position in my home district... she graduated from a school in Austin, TX... Not my home district, let alone... not San Antonio, TX... okay, fine whatever.... Flashforward to after I killed myself testing and adding another certification to help my chances of getting a job.... and then immediately following that, having ongoing correspondance with the HR dept. heads having them assure me that they'll get my name out there to schools and try and help me as much as humanly possible regarding openings for the spring semester last school year.... and then in the second week back from the holiday break, there's a brand-spankin' new teacher starting out with her classroom... Same boat as me experience-wise... equally, if not less experience in classroom settings (by way of substituting) and she lands this job... even after my constant correspondance with HR... and I found out through conversations with her at lunch time (in my 2 days of my subbing job) that she too, is not even from San Antonio, TX! This was the point when I seriously starting having, "WTF?!?!?!" going through my head. Not long after this (about a week), I discovered that someone I went to HS with, who was an alternative certification candidate*** had landed a job as a 5th grade teacher!!!!!!!

***Alternative certification candidate-means that they have completed a program to be eligible for certification upon completion of a year of teaching.... they are NOT certified individuals... I was lead to believe by the HR dept of my "home" district (among many publications and various other sources) that the alternative certification candidates are at the bottom of the totem pole because they do not yet have their certification... not to mention, the amount of college/university coursework devoted specifically to education.

So, of course I've been terribly P.O.'ed by a lot of this... and as I was in bed last night I started thinking... I wonder how much good it would do me to write a lengthy letter to the Superintendent of the district, as well as all the HR dept. heads, and maybe others in the district. This really sprung into my head b/c I realized... "For SHITS SAKE... my Mom STILL VOLUNTEERS FOR THE HIGH SCHOOL BAND AND I GRADUATED 8 YEARS AGO!!!!!!!" It just crossed my mind how incredibly loyal we've been to this district for YEARS! For 3 years after I graduated from HS, I even continued to volunteer with the band and drumline for various things they needed help with! And I never felt like it was a waste of my time... I love my school district... I love that they pride themselves on being proactive and at the forefront of the newest teaching strategies, techniques, available services, and technology.... and I've always thought (since elementary school) that I would grow up, become a teacher, and come back and work in my school district... because it's HOME.

So... if you've gotten this far... I want to know (now that I've loosely drafted a letter "To Whom It May Concern:") if a 2 page letter about my story... growing up in the district... being moved to become a teacher... family volunteering (even currently)...and now my struggle trying to get a job... even after adding 2 more certification areas beyond what I originally went to school for... is that too much...? Too strong...? Bare in mind.... I strongly voiced my thoughts and feelings for when I found out people who are NOT products of the district are apparently getting some sort of priority treatment... Kate would probably be the best person to give advice on this as she works in the school district. I just want to know if that's going too far... I don't plan on sending this letter now... this letter will most likely be sent sometime around the end of Sept. (in the event I don't manage to find a job somewhere in the district... EVEN if I get a job in another district... because I want them to know my feelings on being screwed by them repeatedly... not to mention SEVERAL principals' unprofessionalism in some sort of response to faxes that were OBVIOUSLY sent from Office Max... meaning I had to shell out $8 just to send stuff to their campus... they could have at least taken a moment to respond... this was after school had ended... no reason to NOT give a short response... even similar to the crappy one I got from that principal who didn't say anything to me about my interview for nearly a month!)

Onward!!!

Well, now that I have OFFICIALLY become certified in special education, I'm hoping that things will be MUCH easier getting a job. I've been updating various things such as my resume` and online applications I have with different school districts. Principals that I contacted I re-sent my resume` so that they have my most current copy...! I'm really and truly hoping this will GREATLY help my chances of getting something in the next couple-few weeks...!

We have a certain area within our NE school district where there are a lot of Mexican immigrants. They typically let their kids/themselves go visit relatives that are still residing in Mexico... and apparently the Mexican school system doesn't resume classes until after Labor Day. SO, we end up with a LOT of late registration after the first week of school... it always causes an issue of needing to hire on extra teachers after the start of school to comply with state mandated student:teacher ratios and all. The only cruddy part is that the district tends to drag their feet regarding hiring more people... of course because of the almighty $$$... They don't want to give up any more in salaries than they have to.

In other news, I FINALLY replaced my swim goggles and so I fully intend on integrating swimming laps into my weekly workout. I think a large part of the reason I don't like working out is the resistance training... so, because swimming laps combines resistance and cardio, I'm hoping it'll cut down on some of my resistance training. Also, I think it will do WONDERS for my arthritis problems in my knee (the one I had surgery on 8 years ago this past June)... I continue to have quite a bit of arthritis probs with it, and hopefully that movement will help increase flexibility in that joint. It'll probably help my left foot, also... as it seems I'm having some sort of arthritic issues with it also. And, lastly, I think it will help me get back on track and build my endurance... I'm getting hopeful in the thought that I may be able to pick up some recreational tennis playing again... but I wouldn't dare until I'm in better shape... but I do know that I don't think I want to attempt it until it's cooler... with the cooler weather coming up in November... I CAN'T WAIT! I really hope that I'll have built up my endurance/stamina and helped my joints so that I can play and volley as many times as possible... (instead of just volleying like, 2-3 times over the net and feeling pathetic and old!)

Last bit of news/update... is that my nephew is coming to town this weekend! We're watching him ALL WEEKEND while my bro/sis-in-law go to a bed/breakfast for the weekend to celebrate their 5th wedding anniversary. It's hard to believe that it's been 5 years.... but I guess it has.... also, hopefully we'll be able to iron out more details with them about Conner's baptism service this fall. I can't wait to see the little booger again... he's completely walking on his own, and I'm sure that he's talking a LOT more! My favorite part about seeing him is getting little baby kisses... :) He's SO sweet... he makes the "muah" noise when he smacks ya! Hopefully I'll have some pictures to post after the weekend, too...!

Today is...

Today is the first day of school. This means... FOR ME... it's a bad day. Especially since there were a couple people I knew thru school that JUST graduated and apparently were able to get a position. Last night, I had a moment that I just cried... I don't understand why it is SO DIFFICULT for me to get a job... (actually, I do... I originally certified in an area that's so common... and subsequently SO OVERSTOCKED with candidates that I screwed myself... the only experience I have with MS or HS is subbing and for someone conducting interviews that just isn't enough experience for them... at least not for a grade level that is tested by the state).

Well, I have had a silver-lining in the day... I was totally ready to go do things to keep my mind off the fact that I SHOULD'VE been in my classroom today... I was going to go find a new swimsuit on clearance... then I was planning on going and killing myself swimming laps... and then I entirely planned on spending the rest of the day finishing Dexter: Season 2 and then watching either Reno: 911! episodes or The Office episodes... at least til Daughn/Damian would save me from the day and I could go over to play Wii or SOMETHING. Anyhow... I got an email today....

It had a link to my scores from my Special Education Certification test... and I PASSED! I'm REALLY hoping this will make it MUCH easier to find a job after the craziness with the enrollment influx right after Labor Day.... WE'LL SEE! I'll keep everyone posted... but for now I'm going to go about the rest of my day... and letting others know the good news.

Waiting

Well, my test on Weds. seemed to go pretty well. I'm not sure that I completely ACED it... but I'm pretty certain I at least passed it. There were a few questions I really kept coming back to... and I checked them in my book and notes when I got home and I had answered them correctly. I'm hoping that's a good sign of how I did on the exam. But, I will only know for sure when I get my results... which will hopefully be this evening or tomorrow sometime (I always click to receive my "unofficial" score report via email before the official scores come in the mail... they have never had a discrepancy between the 2 before... and this is the 4th exam I've taken, so I'm sure it wouldn't be any different).

So, I'm just waiting, and hoping that I got a 240/300 or higher (you have to have a 240 to have a passing score). :-)

I think my head will explode soon

I've been studying up a storm for my Spec. Ed. test Weds. morning!!! I'm excited because I think this may really be a good fit for me... I've always enjoyed helping kids that need it the most, and it's so much more rewarding to see students grow by leaps and bounds!

I'm pretty well prepared as it is... I'm just going over some final things regarding laws and rights and services to special education students and their families... and then I will be completely prepared! I called the testing services today to check about parking, so I feel completely ready... and even more exciting is the fact that I get to meet up with Jamey downtown for lunch Weds!!! I have no idea where we'll grab a bite, but it will be an adventure considering it's been quite a while since I've explored the downtown area! We really ought to go eat at the Guenther House but I'll have to do some research on Yelp and see what people recommend in the area around her office building.

Anyhow, back to studying... I'll blog more later!

I made an important decision on Sunday night

Well... here I am again... in the boat of JOBLESSNESS! But I think I may finally have found a way out of that boat.

I contacted a teacher that I subbed for very frequently in one of the middle schools asking if she knew if there were any openings at her school... and asking if she could please get my resume and other documents to the principal, because I highly suspected that the lady in the office that was supposed to be getting my stuff to her the previous few times I'd tried had just been putting them in the circular file. Out of this sprung the discussion of whether or not I had ever considered adding ESL or Spec. Ed. certification. I had thought about both, as they make you much more marketable as a teacher... I had more interest in the ESL simply because I don't know that I could work with severely special needs kids and not have my tender heart interfere with things... like letting them move on! lol

Well, after talking to this teacher, she told me there would be little possibility that I'd ever work in that area of special ed. and that I would more than likely be an inclusion teacher (this news comforted me... and considering I student taught in an inclusion room and no one can really get away from inclusion anymore because they're finally enforcing laws) I was glad to hear it. She also said it'd be a perfect transition from what I've been doing to what I want to do... considering inclusion teachers (at least here in TX) do not plan any lessons or grade anything.... they are given material/instructions from the classroom teacher, and work with the kids on it. I had never really thought of all of that... but it's essentially what I'm already doing as a sub anyway! lol

After this discussion I went to look over the preparation manual... still not completely convinced this is what I wanted. There will be more questions than the amount of sample questions I got to review... but of the 37 sample questions, I only missed 3... and the answer was the other option after I narrowed it down to 2 of 4... which tells me with careful thinking, I could've probably gotten to that answer. All I feel like I need to do to study is review the competencies (there are 12) and go over specifics of IDEA, etc. A lot of what's on the test I have to know as a classroom teacher anyway and have already tested on it... so I feel very confident that I can take this test, and pass!

So, on Weds. 8-20-08 I am taking my Spec. Ed. EC-12 certification test. If things work out the way they did with my 4-8 certification, I should be able to pay for my certification to process by the 23rd... which means I will be certified by the first day of school... which means any extra teachers they hire to accommodate because of registration since last week would be hired right when I'm in a position to take a job.

WISH ME LUCK! I feel like perhaps this is what I always should have been shooting for. Maybe fate was not allowing me to do what I thought I wanted because I'm better used in this other area. Only time will tell... but it also doesn't hurt that the teacher who helped me come to this decision started out in Spec. Ed.... and just happens to know the 2 heads of the dept. for the district. ;-)

Apparently I'm my worst critic

When it comes to singing. Hold on.... back up. I've always known I can sing... I've been singing since I started talking, basically. I grew up on all the old Hollywood musicals, and various jazz/big band greats like Glen Miller and listening to Billie Holiday and Etta James... some Sarah Vaughan. I listened to a LOT of classical music, and I used to *try* singing opera pieces by Mozart (that was from me watching the movie Amadeus ALL THE TIME... yeah, I have the dialogue memorized... still haven't quite nailed his laugh, tho!)

Growing up, I listened to a LOT of the Beatles, Beach Boys... various oldies that my parents loved... The Beatles are probably one of my absolute favorite bands of all time.... I think they are one of the few bands which I actually enjoy nearly every single song they've recorded. I can't say that about many bands... they are one of a few.

I've never recorded any of my singing. I've always wanted to because I'm much more comfortable doing that than singing in public, or in front of people I don't know well. Sure, I sing nearly all of the time we play Rock Band at Daughn and Damian's... but they're like family, and I'm okay in that arena. I've ALWAYS wanted to perform a solo at church... but I've been too afraid... people can *SEE* me while I'm singing... even if I go up to the choir loft!

Myspace has a karaoke... and once you download the program, then you can record songs... post them on there, and people can go and rate them and leave compliments. If I remember correctly there are a few that I put under my little run down... "Need to re-record." I'm not 100% happy with all of them... but honestly now that I think of it... it's simply because I have a CRAPPY microphone. Jeez... it picks up all sorta "FUZZ" and it's super sensitive. I think I need one of those foam things to put over the top... maybe I can jimmy-rig one on my own and test it out. Anyhow... I've gotten pretty good feedback.... there are 6 songs up.... I recorded them all yesterday (in between... and when I should've been... cleaning lol) Go check them out... if you have myspace, and you're logged in... you should be able to leave feedback (but I'm not sure on this...)

http://kSolo.MySpace.com/Frogqqqslek