Degree? Check.
Certification? Check.
Resume and references? Check.

Next steps: Register for job fairs, network, assemble portfolio, send out resume.

Summer

I've been working at Bob Evans all summer, finding my little niche in the culture of the "day-shift" women, a crowd of mothers and wives who take their tip money very seriously. I am so grateful for this job, but I'm counting down the days that I can get back into the schools.

In my last entry, I talked about the restlessness I felt working as a substitute teacher. But you don't know what you have until it's gone, of course. I can't wait to be back in classrooms, talking to young people, watching tenured/expert teachers, putting my face out there for all to see, and getting compliments on my willingness to work. I can't wait to hear all the district happenings and hear the teachers complain about their jobs (they have no idea how jealous I am!).

I'm going to be so much more adamant about finding subbing jobs and being prepared to be called in every day. I also got some advice from a substitute that I worked with often during student teaching: he said to give your resume and a cover letter to each school and district that I want to work with about taking any permanent sub positions available. This is going to be my goal for August.

All Mixed Up

I'm a 24-year-old college graduate in an economic recession, so I need to be one thing above all: patient. I've been subbing in the area, but I'm having trouble seeing it as valuable teaching experience.

I applied for a job as a teaching assistant in a Pre-K classroom. The interview went well, but I'm still not sure it's the right step for me. I need to work on getting certified in the Ohio and other surrounding states. I've looked at the Ohio Department of Education website and had a hard time finding out what test I need to take.

So, let's step back and take a look at the big picture: My ultimate goal is to get position in the secondary setting as a teacher of Language Arts. My current status?

-waiting on the results of my minor certification test
-not even close to making progress on my portfolio
-working as a substitute teacher and a server
-watching all of my friends move away from Ypsilanti

I'm in limbo. It doesn't help that I have a new boyfriend and would rather not move away from him just yet. Oh man. Life.

Disappointment.

I didn't get accepted to Teach for America. I got the email about a week ago. They couldn't give feedback about my application, which was frustrating.

I just wish I knew where I was headed in August. I'm trying to prepare for teacher job fairs in the spring. I need to:

• buy a suit.
• have a fully loaded portfolio of awesomeness.
• pass the History MTTC (which is going to require massive amounts of studying)
• save money.
  

I finished and submitted my application for Teach for America. It's an organization that places college graduates in low-income areas and districts and teaches them how to become advocates for social change through teaching. It's one of the many Americorps branches and Obama even mentioned it at one of the inaugural balls.

We were asked to make preferences on where to be placed, and I chose New York City, Chicago, and Phoenix. All three sound like places that I'd like to live. I'm not really picky about where I go, though. We sign a two-year service commitment if we're chosen.

I felt a calling to this because I feel like it would be a place of fostered growth. There is a lot of cooperative work involved--at least it seems--and I work best in a team setting. I feel like it would be a great way to get away from Southeast Michigan/Northwest Ohio for a while, and be doing something in my desired field at the same time.

My resume could still use some fine-tuning, but it's looking pretty good. I want to see someone at Eastern's Career Services office who can give me a professional opinion of it. My next project is my portfolio...