A year off to think. (part 1)

So Tyson has been concerned about my career.  More specifically, he's worried about me following his career around.  So I started reflecting on what I have done in the past ten years, including student teaching...what do I like best, what do I think I do best and and would like to pursue....and so far the conclusion that I've come to is that I'm glad I have this next year off to think about it.

My student teaching started with a part-time internship at Whitman Middle School with a fantastic orchestra teacher named Megan Cleary.  She was, at the time, teaching 6th grade choir, 6th and 7/8 orchestra, then traveling to Ingraham High School for orchestra and mariachi (an after school group).  That spring with her students, I attempted to play cello with the kids, learned how to tune violins REALLY FAST, and got my first exposure to non-traditional curriculum.  During that experience, she said to me "you should do your student teaching with Rich Sumstad over at Nathan Hale.  He does band and choir, and you would probably get along really well."  So the following September, I talked to the guy in the school of education who did all the music teacher placements.   What I found out much much later was this: Rich had worked with a string of student teachers, one every year for the past few years, and he had promised his students he wouldn't have any more for a while.  But my placement person was Rich's high school band director.  So he interviewed me anyway, and let the kids vote on it.  Thankfully, the previous year, they'd had a good experience with the student teacher (who I am now married to...) so between that and Rich's recommendation, the students voted to give me a chance.  (side note: Thanks Tyson, for NOT sucking! Love you!)

Rich had turned a rough high school program (15 kids in band, 15 kids in choir, three piano classes) into one of the most respected schools in the city.  When I was there, he had an award winning vocal jazz group, a concert choir (60 kids) and band (75 kids), two jazz bands, an orchestra (taught by Megan) and an all-auditioned, brand new women's choir of 15, which I directed that spring as a contracted employee of the parent's group.  But what he really emphasized with me (and with Tyson, too, I found out later) was the piano lab.  "We say music is important for all students, but never offer anything besides ensembles.  This is the class that I protect as much as my most select ensemble, because this is the class where we reach the rest of the student body." 

If that philosophy familiar to you Northwestern folks, here's the reason why: Rich's mentor was Steve Morrison at the University of Washington.  Dr. Morrison was one of Bennett Reimer's students.  =)

This student teaching experience shaped my philosophy going into my first job, and was reinforced every place I went after.  And then, of course, it was cemented when I went to Northwestern, and has become my philosophical "hill to die on" in the current educational environment (more on that later).

First job was Ingraham High School. Twenty-two years old, teaching high schoolers.  I would have visitors to the classroom, and watch their confused faces as they tried to figure out which person in the room was the teacher.  I was stopped for my hall pass a couple times, and had my lunch taken away from me by the cafeteria worker because I cut in line (Thank God I remembered to put on my ID badge that day).  But the "kids" were great for the most part, and the parents were incredibly supportive.  I also had a lot of supportive colleagues in the building, and Tyson, who Saved. My. Ass. with regards to marching band. ("Band camp?" I said.  Tyson says "Yeah, and do you have drill paper?" Me: "What's that?" *facepalm*----marching band is the ONE place SPU really dropped the ball for us music ed people.  One professor in ONE class said "if you want to know about marching band, come see me and I'll give you a show that will make your principal happy."  That was the extent of our instruction....)

But despite the high learning curve, and being very close in age to the students, I felt I made a LOT of progress in one year, and was already plotting how to take over the top spot in the district for choir.  Then I got my RIF notice.  After crying (a lot), and students writing angry letters to the administration and district, Tyson says to me "I want to go to Northwestern, take some trumpet lessons from someone in the CSO, but I don't want to go without you."  So I spent that last month or two researching apartments, jobs, how to transfer teaching licenses, etc, and renting a truck for us to move the two of us 2000 miles away from everything and everyone we knew.

*if you have read this far, congratulations! I have to take a break, so stay tuned for the rest of the story, and my conclusions about what to do with the rest of my career.....