I Am Leaving....

I've been informed today that there will not be a job for me at my current placement next year. No, I didn't get fired or laid off, but I've been asked to pack up and leave. To a different school within our district, that is.

I won't elaborate on the boring details, but basically our school district's budget is short several million dollars and the admin is currently working on ways to make up for it, staff reduction being one of them.

When I first heard of possibilities of staff reduction in our department, I had a feeling that I would be a good candidate. I am not a coach or a club leader, and do not serve on any committees. I come to work at 7am, leave at 3pm every other day. In other words, my attachment to that place is minimal. So, when I got a sweet email from my principle asking to meet with me, I knew it was time.

It was cruel of her to tell me two days in advance about the meeting. I was thinking, speculating, preparing myself mentally for this conversation til exhaustion. I thought about the possibility of lay off and imagined myself a stay at home mom again. Sweet thoughts came to mind.

So the meeting came and I learned that she is very sad to part with me, but you know, she doesn't have a choice. She said that if anything ever opens up, she will welcome me back with open arms. She sounded sincere.

But in the mean time, I am to think about the job they do have for me next year...that of an elementary ESL teacher. Me, an elementary teacher? It has never appealed to me to voluntary take on this kind of endeavor. After volunteering for a few hours in my daughter's kindergarten class, my opinion of elementary teachers being made of different flesh and bones than the rest of us, proved right.

Though I know very little about teaching little kids, working with pre-teen minds and attitudes doesn't sound awful to me. This is my opportunity to acquire new skills and who knows, maybe fall in love with teaching again. It is ironic that this comes to me at such a time as described in this post.

However, the second option to this involuntary transfer would be to voluntary leave. So, I've got some decisions to make.

But for now, I know that I am leaving, just don't know where to.