August is turning out to be the month of interest in lil' ole me.
I have been interviewed a record number of times this month by three different institutions.
Kinder Morgan, BP and Aldine ISD.
Two of them are on my old line of work and one in what I have been trying to get into.
I am anticipating that there will be one of the three extending me an offer soon.
Wish me luck!
Ciao,
Darrell
Wednesday, August 10, 2016
Tuesday, July 19, 2016
May Have To Give Up The Dream And Go Back To Familiar Waters
I thought I could be a Teacher. iTeachTEXAS told me that I could do it without having to go back to University and getting an Education Certification.
I swallowed the spiel hook line and sinker. I actually thought that I could get an Alternative Certificate after performing an Internship at a school and join the ranks of Texas Educators.
To save some money (it would be $1200 fee from iTeachTEXAS to do an unpaid 12 week Student Teaching gig on top of my $4000+ program fee they already have charged), I opted to try and do a paid internship at a school district. Almost one and a half years later, and lots of substituting under my belt, that dream of becoming a Teacher is on its last breath.
Is it the iTeachTEXAS program that is the issue here? No it is the School Administrators (read School Principal here) that are stonewalling me at every turn.
As a Substitute Teacher my skills are in demand. Principals at every school that I have worked at like it when I am there. Do they even think of me when a permanent job comes open? Hell no. I feel like they see me as someone that is an outsider and has no business in being there as the Teacher of Record. Like I said in earlier postings, it is all Lip Service. String me along, dangle the bait in front of me and then keep it just out of reach.
Well, I am getting tired of this baiting. It is time to search for other employment away from education.
Opportunities are coming my way that could be mine with a great interview. I just hope that I can impress those folks enough to give me a chance. Lord knows the Principals at all of the schools that I have worked at are not even going to glance at my resume.
More later.
Ciao,
Darrell
UPDATE - Aug16
Last week I interviewed for a teaching position with Aldine ISD. Apparently they will take the plunge that Conroe ISD refuses to take where I am concerned. If I am chosen, then some of my faith in the education system will be restored.
D.
I swallowed the spiel hook line and sinker. I actually thought that I could get an Alternative Certificate after performing an Internship at a school and join the ranks of Texas Educators.
To save some money (it would be $1200 fee from iTeachTEXAS to do an unpaid 12 week Student Teaching gig on top of my $4000+ program fee they already have charged), I opted to try and do a paid internship at a school district. Almost one and a half years later, and lots of substituting under my belt, that dream of becoming a Teacher is on its last breath.
Is it the iTeachTEXAS program that is the issue here? No it is the School Administrators (read School Principal here) that are stonewalling me at every turn.
As a Substitute Teacher my skills are in demand. Principals at every school that I have worked at like it when I am there. Do they even think of me when a permanent job comes open? Hell no. I feel like they see me as someone that is an outsider and has no business in being there as the Teacher of Record. Like I said in earlier postings, it is all Lip Service. String me along, dangle the bait in front of me and then keep it just out of reach.
Well, I am getting tired of this baiting. It is time to search for other employment away from education.
Opportunities are coming my way that could be mine with a great interview. I just hope that I can impress those folks enough to give me a chance. Lord knows the Principals at all of the schools that I have worked at are not even going to glance at my resume.
More later.
Ciao,
Darrell
UPDATE - Aug16
Last week I interviewed for a teaching position with Aldine ISD. Apparently they will take the plunge that Conroe ISD refuses to take where I am concerned. If I am chosen, then some of my faith in the education system will be restored.
D.
Wednesday, July 13, 2016
Regular Teacher Contract Signing Day Has Come and Gone ... Time to Troll For a Spot Somewhere
Well, the date has come and gone for current teachers to sign their contracts for the 2016-17 school year. It is time for me to troll the net for open positions at some of the Districts I would like to teach with this next school year.
So far, I have found a couple of interesting JH positions and have followed the protocol of informing the Principals of my desires. Hopefully, there will be some action on those requests.
I have also been trying to return to my old field of employment in the mapping world.
It is in the GIS world that I have had the best luck in interviewing. Just in the last two months, I have had more interviews than in the whole of the last year and a half.
Would my old line of work challenge me as much as teaching? No, but then again, some of the positions that have been coming my way are a bit more complex than what I used to do in the GIS world. I think that I am up for the task.
iTeachTEXAS sends me an email about three times a week with jobs across the State. Many of them are not in my certification field or are just too far away to justify a move for so little recompense.
I am trying to make myself a bit more marketable by attempting the ESL again in a few weeks. A study guide is here, right next to me, and I peruse it several times a week to see if there is anything I missed the first time I read it. It is a dry, not quite Saharan dry, read and can be difficult to push through from time to time; but I persevere till the end of the chapter.
I can hope that this return to a career path from decades ago will bear fruit, but the odds are against that from what I can tell ... mostly the deafening silence from those principals that I have communicated with about their positions.
More later.
Ciao,
Darrell
So far, I have found a couple of interesting JH positions and have followed the protocol of informing the Principals of my desires. Hopefully, there will be some action on those requests.
I have also been trying to return to my old field of employment in the mapping world.
It is in the GIS world that I have had the best luck in interviewing. Just in the last two months, I have had more interviews than in the whole of the last year and a half.
Would my old line of work challenge me as much as teaching? No, but then again, some of the positions that have been coming my way are a bit more complex than what I used to do in the GIS world. I think that I am up for the task.
iTeachTEXAS sends me an email about three times a week with jobs across the State. Many of them are not in my certification field or are just too far away to justify a move for so little recompense.
I am trying to make myself a bit more marketable by attempting the ESL again in a few weeks. A study guide is here, right next to me, and I peruse it several times a week to see if there is anything I missed the first time I read it. It is a dry, not quite Saharan dry, read and can be difficult to push through from time to time; but I persevere till the end of the chapter.
I can hope that this return to a career path from decades ago will bear fruit, but the odds are against that from what I can tell ... mostly the deafening silence from those principals that I have communicated with about their positions.
More later.
Ciao,
Darrell
Wednesday, June 15, 2016
Texas Alternative Certification and School District Lip Service
Despair.
Having a career fall out from underneath me, Fourteen years and a few more with other Companies down the drain. The only thing to show is a hefty check from my former employer and a Town Car ride home.
Recovery.
Finding a new career path ... actually returning to an original path from decades ago.
Trial by Fire.
Substituting for Teachers of Record. Finding that I really enjoy teaching and that I think that I have a knack for it.
Hope,
Hope of a new start and a career.
Knowledge.
New things to learn and become familiar with in this new career path.
Grasping.
Finding out things aren't what they seem to be.
Disappointment.
The realization that any hope that I have at gaining a position with any school district is rapidly going up in flames.
Interviews are few and very far between when it comes to getting a teaching position. Just last week, I had an interview for a seventh grade spot. The week goes by with me thinking that I have a chance at getting it ... then reality sets in. Having an alternative certification is not going to get me anywhere with the schools in my local area.
I can say that when I ran into the Superintendent and the Board one day earlier this school year and let them know that I would like to get on at this district, he said that he would make sure that I got an interview. True to his word, later on that day I heard from HR and in less than three weeks, I was interviewed.
Granted, it was for a position well outside of my degree field, but the State, through several exams, indicated that I could perform this job to their standards.
Since February 2015, I have substituted at many schools in my local district and have tried to make a name for myself with the Principals and Vice Principals that run them. There were several teachers that called on me first to sub for them before a general request was made. I answered that call whenever I could, which was most of the time.
This putting of myself in the administration sights for very little pay just to make that all important connection still has not paid off.
Good ole' boy networks that desire a credentialed, inexperienced newbie twenty-something fresh out of school ... not someone like me with decades of work experience, knowledge and the willingness to pass on information to students along with a lot of life experience.
Taking an alternative route to certification is not an easy one and I do not think that it is taken seriously by any of the principals that come across my resume. I also think that anyone that is looking to follow this path needs to really take into account that unless the twelve week student teaching portion is done before taking the pedagogy exam you really stand no chance in getting on at many of the Houston area school districts.
But, as my spouse is fond of saying ... I beat my head against the wall just because I think that it is the right thing to do. She is right, but this is a wall that I feel is not going to give easily nor soon.
Perhaps I would be better off staying out of teaching and get back to my old career.
More later.
Ciao,
Darrell
Having a career fall out from underneath me, Fourteen years and a few more with other Companies down the drain. The only thing to show is a hefty check from my former employer and a Town Car ride home.
Recovery.
Finding a new career path ... actually returning to an original path from decades ago.
Trial by Fire.
Substituting for Teachers of Record. Finding that I really enjoy teaching and that I think that I have a knack for it.
Hope of a new start and a career.
Knowledge.
New things to learn and become familiar with in this new career path.
Grasping.
Finding out things aren't what they seem to be.
Disappointment.
The realization that any hope that I have at gaining a position with any school district is rapidly going up in flames.
Interviews are few and very far between when it comes to getting a teaching position. Just last week, I had an interview for a seventh grade spot. The week goes by with me thinking that I have a chance at getting it ... then reality sets in. Having an alternative certification is not going to get me anywhere with the schools in my local area.
I can say that when I ran into the Superintendent and the Board one day earlier this school year and let them know that I would like to get on at this district, he said that he would make sure that I got an interview. True to his word, later on that day I heard from HR and in less than three weeks, I was interviewed.
Granted, it was for a position well outside of my degree field, but the State, through several exams, indicated that I could perform this job to their standards.
Since February 2015, I have substituted at many schools in my local district and have tried to make a name for myself with the Principals and Vice Principals that run them. There were several teachers that called on me first to sub for them before a general request was made. I answered that call whenever I could, which was most of the time.
This putting of myself in the administration sights for very little pay just to make that all important connection still has not paid off.
Good ole' boy networks that desire a credentialed, inexperienced newbie twenty-something fresh out of school ... not someone like me with decades of work experience, knowledge and the willingness to pass on information to students along with a lot of life experience.
Taking an alternative route to certification is not an easy one and I do not think that it is taken seriously by any of the principals that come across my resume. I also think that anyone that is looking to follow this path needs to really take into account that unless the twelve week student teaching portion is done before taking the pedagogy exam you really stand no chance in getting on at many of the Houston area school districts.
But, as my spouse is fond of saying ... I beat my head against the wall just because I think that it is the right thing to do. She is right, but this is a wall that I feel is not going to give easily nor soon.
Perhaps I would be better off staying out of teaching and get back to my old career.
More later.
Ciao,
Darrell
Tuesday, May 3, 2016
Aftermath Post Layoff
Where to begin ...
About 9 in the morning on January 30th, 2015, my world caved in all around me.
Earlier that day, as I was walking in with my fellow vanpoolers, we noticed quite a few black towncars parked out front with their drivers standing next to them. Jokingly, one of my more seasoned riders said that there must be some kind of layoff going on somewhere in the building.
We all got a laugh out of it and proceeded up the elevators to our cubes unaware that those cars were for some of us to go home in later on that morning.
I go through my routine, start up the computers, grab a cup of joe while I get my oatmeal heated up for breakfast. After eating, I throw away my dirty cup and visit with a couple of the guys to see if anything needed to be looked at before the regular part of the day was to begin.
I get a call from my boss (I did not know he was in town) asking me to come back to my cube. No problem, get this over with and then get on to business. He didn't even let me sit down in my chair. I was led to a team room where the hatchet dropped and I was cut loose from my job.
This event, as simple as it was, left me reeling internally and physically.
I was about halfway home when the reality of the situation kicked in and I let it wash over me like a tsunami. I mentally came up for air and fought off the feeling of doom that was beginning to rear its ugly head.
What was I going to tell my Wife? Did the kids need to know as well? How was I going to make ends meet if I couldn't find employment? What would my future hold?
A whole lot more questions were swirling about my brain with no answer in sight.
I couldn't even call my wife ... the company phone was confiscated before my hasty departure. I had to wait until I got to my local coffee house near the vanpool starting point before I had good wifi to text her with the terrible news. In hind sight, I should have driven to her job and told her about it, but I just needed to tell her, so bad judgement took over and I let the cat out of the bag without thinking how she would react. Needless to say, she took it worse than I did ... at first.
This past year or so have been hard on my psyche and I find that it is hard to maintain a upbeat attitude. My Wife has been a source of strength for me and has bolstered my mental state enough to keep me positive.
About 9 in the morning on January 30th, 2015, my world caved in all around me.
Earlier that day, as I was walking in with my fellow vanpoolers, we noticed quite a few black towncars parked out front with their drivers standing next to them. Jokingly, one of my more seasoned riders said that there must be some kind of layoff going on somewhere in the building.
We all got a laugh out of it and proceeded up the elevators to our cubes unaware that those cars were for some of us to go home in later on that morning.
I go through my routine, start up the computers, grab a cup of joe while I get my oatmeal heated up for breakfast. After eating, I throw away my dirty cup and visit with a couple of the guys to see if anything needed to be looked at before the regular part of the day was to begin.
I get a call from my boss (I did not know he was in town) asking me to come back to my cube. No problem, get this over with and then get on to business. He didn't even let me sit down in my chair. I was led to a team room where the hatchet dropped and I was cut loose from my job.
This event, as simple as it was, left me reeling internally and physically.
I was about halfway home when the reality of the situation kicked in and I let it wash over me like a tsunami. I mentally came up for air and fought off the feeling of doom that was beginning to rear its ugly head.
What was I going to tell my Wife? Did the kids need to know as well? How was I going to make ends meet if I couldn't find employment? What would my future hold?
A whole lot more questions were swirling about my brain with no answer in sight.
I couldn't even call my wife ... the company phone was confiscated before my hasty departure. I had to wait until I got to my local coffee house near the vanpool starting point before I had good wifi to text her with the terrible news. In hind sight, I should have driven to her job and told her about it, but I just needed to tell her, so bad judgement took over and I let the cat out of the bag without thinking how she would react. Needless to say, she took it worse than I did ... at first.
This past year or so have been hard on my psyche and I find that it is hard to maintain a upbeat attitude. My Wife has been a source of strength for me and has bolstered my mental state enough to keep me positive.
So now, as I have been doing for a while, I hunt for a job.
More later,
Ciao!
Darrell
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)