AN UPDATE ON TIM

It's been a while since I've let you all know how things are going for Tim, so let me get you up to speed.

Employment - Tim's applied for multiple teaching, non-teaching, and non-education jobs over the last several months, but nothing has worked out.  He has subbed four days this school year, is doing some work as a health coach, and was able to work about ten days painting and doing various handyman things for a friend.  Basketball season is now underway, so he has some officiating income to earn.  The money will be helpful, but it's his tenth season and he really enjoys it, which makes it even better.

Subbing -  He subbed three days in Canby at the beginning of October and one day at North Marion in November.  He's on the sub lists for a few districts, but teachers are more likely to call subs they know than to pull a random name off a list, so subbing hasn't been nearly the source of income that we expected it to be this year. 

The best district for him to sub in is Salem-Keizer, as he's worked there for six years and has plenty of contacts, but that hasn't worked out.  He attended their sub orientation in October and then had to wait to get clearance to sub.  He received a letter in early November stating that he didn't meet the district requirements for employment and that, due to the large number of applicants, they won't discuss individual situations online, by phone, or in person.

That made absolutely no sense, as he's met the requirements for six years, was told in June that he could still work there, was interviewed twice over the summer for two different jobs in the district, and has had nothing change in regards to his experience, licensing, etc. since any of those things happened.  While I totally understand that they can't hash out everyone's rejection letters, something was clearly wrong with his.  Whether it was inadvertently sent to him alone or to a whole list of people, it's not good to send total rejection (as opposed to being turned down for a particular job, but still being qualified to work in the district) letters to people who are qualified, potential future employees, and say that you're totally unwilling to talk to them about it.

Well, the good thing for him is that he's worked there for several years and has a file, one that he has the right to access.  So he drove down one day to see if it had just been a clerical error.  That would have been fine, as mistakes happen, but we just wanted the problem corrected so that he could sub.  The woman who sent the letter, Letter Lady, wasn't available, so her assistant said she'd find out what was going on and have Letter Lady contact him. 

We waited a couple days and didn't hear anything, so he drove down again and asked to see his file.  He was told to schedule an appointment with the woman in charge of the file, File Lady, so that they could figure out what was going on.  The appointment was set for the following week and he drove down again the day before Thanksgiving.  File Lady said she had no idea why the letter was sent, that she'd talk to Letter Lady and contact Tim when she had more information.  We waited into the next week, as the district was closed for the holiday, and he left File Lady a message to see if she'd heard anything.  She hadn't and said again that she'd contact him when she knew anything. 

It's been two calendar months since the letter was sent and several weeks, even with the break, since he contacted the district, but we've never heard back from either Letter Lady or File Lady.  Meanwhile, he's still not cleared to sub.  Is that bizarre or what?!

I would still like that letter to be removed from his file simply because it's inaccurate.  However, I don't think you can get any clearer of an answer about whether or not you are meant to work in a district than if you are sent a letter saying you aren't qualified and those with the ability to find out why it was sent aren't finding out.  I'd call that a closed door.  I have no idea why it's closed, but it's definitely been slammed shut.  At least for now.

School - Right now he's on break, but Tim is still taking classes one night a week in hopes of attaining his administrative license.  He's not throwing in the towel on teaching, but an admin license would open up a lot more job opportunities than only being qualified to do middle/high school PE with boys locker room supervision does.

Part of the admin program is a requirement for practicum hours and the original plan would have had him doing those hours next fall.  However, he received a call from a classmate a while back letting him know about a school that really needed some help.  He called the school, went in for a meeting, and was offered a position shadowing/assisting the vice principal, which he should be starting soon.  So awesome!

The good news is that he'll be able to get his practicum hours cranked out way ahead of schedule, which will make job hunting in the spring and summer much easier.  The bad news is that it's full-time, a bit of a drive from our home, and unpaid, which means he'll be putting in long hours, but unable to sub or pick up odd jobs for the next few months.  He'll still officiate in the evenings during basketball season, which will help a little, but that, the practicum, commuting, class, homework, and church leave just about enough time to sleep and none for earning money. 

So, that's where things are at.  As many of you have seen from my frequent "Blessings" posts on Facebook, God has been faithful to provide for our needs through various ways over the last several months and we've been blessed with the fluff of life on multiple occasions.  He is always the provider, whether he provides through a steady job with adequate income or through other means, and it will be interesting to see what he has in store for us over the next few months.