To my surprise, I jumped on an unexpected opportunity to apply for a paraeducator position at Berlin Elementary School and got the job! Thank you, Lord.
This happened in the midst of the flood devastation from Hurricane Irene on Aug. 28, 2011. I had been unemployed (other than volunteering at Juniper's Fare as its treasurer/bookkeeper) since loosing the local election in March as Clerk/Treasurer for the Town of Moretown. Thank God for that, too, by the way ;-). Due to my success at procrastinating I still haven't submitted my teacher licensure portfolio to the VT Dept. of Education which limits me from applying to any actual teaching positions. Anyway, a full-time paraeducator position is a perfect fit for my schedule at this time.
So, to make a long story shorter...I started my position on September 12th working in special education at the 3rd and 4th grade level. There are three 3rd/4th grade teachers at Berlin and I work with several students in each of these classrooms. Needless to say, I am thrilled to be using my teaching skills at this level and especially thankful for the teachers and the administration that I get to work with. Who knows how stable the position is, but I'm trusting in the plan God has for me and I'm not worrying about the future.
In the meantime, the licensing person is someone I work closely with everyday and she is willing to help me obtain my licensure so it's possible that I may be applying for teaching positions next year. I must say, one of the great advantages in my current position is that my hours are 8:45 am to 3:45 pm and it doesn't involve extra time spent planning lessons - yeah!! That doesn't mean those children's faces aren't etched permanently in my mind though. I'm thankful to be able to pray for each and every one of them because who knows...
It's December already and only 3 weeks away from Christmas vacation. Next on my travel schedule is a missions trip to Jamaica in late February. Stay tuned!
