Saturday, July 19, 2008

Kristine got a job! Praise God!

God works in mysterious ways that's for certain. I've (Kristine) been trying for a year and a half to get a "normal" teaching job because I have my Masters in Teaching. For some odd reason things continually weren't working out. I had great interviews, the principals loved me, yet no one was hiring me. This was VERY depressing and I got very discouraged. So much so that I was applying to retail jobs.

Well I was certain that God wanted me working with children, I just didn't know where. These past few months I branched out and applied to several paraeducator (teacher assistant) positions around Washington and Oregon to help me get a "foot in the door". Most haven't contacted me, but one did and I had a great interview!

I got a job working as a paraeducator with the Northwest Regional Education Service District. I will work full-time as a teacher's assistant in an early intervention program for autistic children. I am super excited because the hours are great and it's right by the college in Hillsboro that Eric is going to go to in January. I will also learn a lot about autistic children and how to help them succeed in education. I've always wanted to learn about this and other specialized education things so I am super excited!

Yes... it's not a licensed teaching job, and it pays less...but for me it's not about the money. It's about impacting children's lives. Someday I would love to use my teaching license, and maybe I am supposed to out on the mission's field. But right now I am perfectly content working at a job that pays $14 and hour and full benefits so I can learn and grow in my knowledge. Who knows...maybe they will decide that they want me as a teacher elsewhere in the district? The schedule for this program is GREAT! It's year round and I love it.

Now I haven't signed any contracts yet...because she just offered me the employment. So it's not totally official yet. Next week I should be able to go up and sign some papers. I also contacted a Sylvan Learning Center in the area and it seems that they are hiring. Depending on the pay this could be a good side job to supplement income while Eric is in school. We'll see!

I plan on including a snippet of this in the new newsletter... I thought I would just blog it on here so people could see more information!

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