Day Ninety-Four...Still Employed (Kinda)

Well, I met with the HR woman, the Employee Relations woman and my union rep (who is JUST AMAZING! She's awesome!) today about my job. Just a snapshot, I was off for Spring Break the 1st week of April, then I got sick the 2nd, 3rd and 4th week of April. I had BAD bronchitis, on the verge of pneumonia. I was literally on bedrest for 3 weeks. My doctor finally released me back to work on April 28th. Well, I got notice that I was put on administrative leave, pending their findings on a few "issues" they had with me and my classroom management. For more info on those things, keep reading my other posts. Anyway, i met with the HR woman, the Employee Relations woman, my union rep and the principal and they threw some things at me, let me "respond"...my responses were very orchestrated...like in court when the lawyer asks a question that is a yes/no question, but the witness/defendant attempts to explain themselves and the lawyer cuts them off or questions them in such a way as to make them look bad. That's what it felt like anyway.

Fast forward to today. I met with those above...except the principal. But the principal didn't want me back at the high school. He, through the Employee Relations woman, said that there was not enough time between now and the end of the year to fix the issues. He said that there were many students, specifically my seniors, who were still very concerned about graduating because they didn't get any feedback and/or grades. He said that he found my files with their graded and returned papers, but that there were several papers with "good job" but no feed back or grades. Well, duh! Those are the papers that if you did them, you got credit and if you didn't you didn't. It wasn't a graded assignment.

He also didn't think that there was enough time to train me to improve my classroom management skills for secondary classrooms. (uh, sir,...it's the STUDENTS! NOT THE TEACHER!)

However, despite the fact that the principal didn't want me back, the district decided they would honor the contract. But, I will not be back teaching ASL at the high school. Instead, I will be a Teaching Assistant in a self-contained Special Education classroom. I will still get my teacher's salary...and will be paid through the end of August. In addition, I will continue with my benefits through the end of September, which is long enough for me to secure another teaching job and continue my benefits elsewhere. And, because I was sick for 3 weeks, rather than taking ALL of that out of my May 30 paycheck, the payroll department and the HR department re-calculated my contract so that the "sting" will be spread out through the next 4 months. Meaning, I will get a little less than my usual teaching salary each month, but it will be a consistent amount at the end of May, June, July and August. So, financially, I will be OK. Especially if I get the job for which I interviewed down in Vancouver.

And, I don't have to work this summer. I CAN work, but I don't HAVE to work. I might work part time...it depends. I just want to get through the end of the year right now. I have 5 weeks left until the last day of school. I can do it. And, this rearranging of my contract is a blessing. I can go to work, come home and not have to worry about lesson plans. I don't have to worry about being prepared as much as I would have with my previous assignment. It's quite relieving not having to worry about it. I will have to clear out my classroom of my personal belongings, but I'm going to do that on Thursday at 2:30...after students are gone. I get to bring my chair home! It's kinda cool!

Anyway, now I can go camping and not have to worry about taking time off a new job. YAY! I won't be able to go to Joyce Meyer with Moob on the 30th, but a small sacrifice for the bigger picture. As much as I would LOVE to go, I just can't.

So, that's the story in a nutshell. God has shown me grace and mercy in this situation and I have to be SO much more responsible. I can't stay home on too many "mental health" days. I can't blow my money with the idea that I'll get another paycheck at the end of the month. I can't spend any money until I know all of my bills are taken care of. I can't eat out. I can't just throw money away.

I hope that this situation won't ruin my chances of getting a teaching job for next year.

On a different note, I've applied to the University of Washington for Summer Quarter. I have been thinking (for quite some time) of going back to college and getting 1 more endorsement: English/Language Arts. It would open up so many more options for me. I could teach middle or high school English in addition to Elementary School, Special Ed and Deaf Ed. So, I would have 4 endorsements, plus subbing I could do. I was initially just going to pursue the additional endorsement...until I found out that as a non-matriculated student (that's the fancy way of saying I'm not pursuing an actual degree), I wouldn't qualify for federal financial aid. So.......I looked into what it would take as far as time and credits to complete another degree. I was thinking of a Masters in English, but I thought, nah, I already have a Masters degree. It was quite intense work. So, I looked into a Bachelors in English. If I can transfer all of my credits from the community college under the Direct Transfer Agreement or something like it, I should be able to JUST concentrate on the classes for my major. I can incorporate the courses I need for the endorsement AND the degree. So...I should come out WAY ahead. Now, I just have to figure out how to pay for it. Hopefully, I'll qualify for financial aid OTHER than loans. If not, I may not do it.

Sigh...

Going to make a box for a birthday gift.