- Oct 15, 2008
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Hi Everyone,
I know with all the starvation, suffering, martyrdom, and pain in the world, especially seeing the plight of our Orthodox brothers and sisters in the Middle East and elsewhere, my prayer request would seem pretty small, but I will ask anyway...
My principal has been steadily treating me worse and worse and has been doing a horrendous job running our school. He has lied to so many people, fouled things up so badly, and has played politics to such a degree while rewarding the worst kids at our school and keeping teachers out of the loop with parents, that our school is super tense. There is zero confidence in his leadership. At this point, there isn't ONE teacher who respects him, but he does have one stooge who is his yes woman--my colleague at sixth grade.
My principal told me two months ago that he was going to need to move a sixth grade teacher across the campus in a couple of months to replace the guy who is in that room retiring. I asked him if that person moving would be me. He said, "Scott, I absolutely promise you that I will not be moving you. No way. Rest easy, relax. I'll be moving Brittany (the other teacher). He knows how much I love the location of my classroom, and how I had been on that other side of the campus and hated those old portable classrooms. I made sure again, he said, "absolutely. You're staying put! Now de-stress!" as he smiled at me and rubbed me on the shoulder.
Last night at 5:30pm, with only TWO days of school left, my principal emails me and says, "I am hereby assigning you to move your classroom across campus to room 72.." with this cheesy, half-hearted bunch of reasoning.
I approached him today and was livid, but tried to keep my emotions in check. I told him I felt lied to, treated like one of the students (he openly likes to tell us how he doesn't give the bad kids bad news until 2:50, right before they go home so they won't blow their tops on him), and that it was poor judgment and completely unprofessional to dump a major move on me with only two days left. He apologized for the tardiness on it, but fought hard telling me he never had promised me with the "I don't recall ever saying I wouldn't move you there" lie. I really made it clear to him that he DID say that.
I told him that I'm the senior staff member and that I found it really disrespectful that he'd take the veteran sixth grade teacher and send me to Siberia on the other side of the school and put the other teacher with the not-yet-hired sixth grade teacher together, playing us apart from one another. I felt disrespected and told him I've paid my dues in my career. He told me that I have an entitlement mentality and that he is doing what is in the "best interest of the school."
I called my deacon last night (also my godfather) who is also a principal in our district and knows my principal (and doesn't trust him one centimeter!), and he really gave me good counsel as to how this is an opportunity to take up my Cross, to not fight back with the same dirty tactics, to accept my situation, and to show dignity and grace in the process. My union president recommended I just suck it up, too.
Right now I'm praying. I'm trying to accept this. For people who are not teachers, trust me, moving an entire classroom is a NIGHTMARE! It's a lot like moving houses in a smaller setting. It's incredible how many books, materials, supplies, and overall junk you accumulate through the years, and how the sheer magnitude of it all is such a daunting task. I'm hurt by this, feel picked-on, and I'm just sad.
As an Orthodox Christian, I'm called to put my chin up, smile to the Lord, accept this whether it's fair or not, and march over to that classroom and keep on doing my best. So I ask you guys to please take a few minutes and remember old Scott (Joseph) in your prayers. Just ask the Lord not for mercy so much as to help me to accept my situation and to show humility rather than pride.
The end of the year is SUPER STRESSFUL. We have to close out cum files, we have barbecues, promotion ceremonies, registration for junior high, report cards and final assessments, cleaning up and going through an extensive checklist of checkout. Add to that the reality of kids being thoroughly insane at this point! To drop an "oh, by the way, pal, you have to move your classroom!" after I'm already almost done shutting mine down, well, it's hardcore.
Right now I'm trying to take care of 3 kids while my wife works graveyards as an RN, trying to cook dinner, dealing with that shoulder/back pain that I've had for 2 years now, and just trying to survive. At work I'm stressed and I'm bringing that home with me. Help me, friends, with your prayers.
One other caveat....
I usually have at least twenty or thirty kids come and visit me who are former students. They range from 7th grade all the way to college! Today, out of nowhere, I had a college student who was in my class back in 2006 come to see me. She told me I was the best teacher she has ever had to this day, and that I inspired and changed her life completely. She is majoring in criminology. She spoke to my class. She just popped in out of nowhere. Then Mark, a seventh grader and student of mine last year, popped in to my class and said, "Mr. A, honestly, your class completely radically changed how I look at life, what I want out of it, and where I'm headed. You really taught the fullness of a subject. I learned more about the Christian faith from you that all my catechism classes since I was a tiny kid. I still care about Church more because of your lessons and powerpoints and talks to us. And history was so alive in your class, something so powerful, now it's so boring at seventh grade. I miss your class. You're the best teacher alive." He was voted by hundreds of kids at his junior high most likely to succeed!
Then another student, now a wrestler and football player, 4.00 grades, headed to high school, came to see me. Tough kid, kind of macho, says, "Mr. A, you're the best teacher I've ever met. I miss your class."
So, it's like God tried to send me a message that my principal may think I'm spit, my the kids, the people we are truly there for, have been impacted and blessed by my work. And that's what matters.
Help me to see the good in what I'm doing rather than dwelling on my principal's treatment toward me.
Sorry to the long-winded post, everyone, but this has been a hellish couple of days for me. I need the prayers of my friends.
Blessings in ICXC,
Gurney
I know with all the starvation, suffering, martyrdom, and pain in the world, especially seeing the plight of our Orthodox brothers and sisters in the Middle East and elsewhere, my prayer request would seem pretty small, but I will ask anyway...
My principal has been steadily treating me worse and worse and has been doing a horrendous job running our school. He has lied to so many people, fouled things up so badly, and has played politics to such a degree while rewarding the worst kids at our school and keeping teachers out of the loop with parents, that our school is super tense. There is zero confidence in his leadership. At this point, there isn't ONE teacher who respects him, but he does have one stooge who is his yes woman--my colleague at sixth grade.
My principal told me two months ago that he was going to need to move a sixth grade teacher across the campus in a couple of months to replace the guy who is in that room retiring. I asked him if that person moving would be me. He said, "Scott, I absolutely promise you that I will not be moving you. No way. Rest easy, relax. I'll be moving Brittany (the other teacher). He knows how much I love the location of my classroom, and how I had been on that other side of the campus and hated those old portable classrooms. I made sure again, he said, "absolutely. You're staying put! Now de-stress!" as he smiled at me and rubbed me on the shoulder.
Last night at 5:30pm, with only TWO days of school left, my principal emails me and says, "I am hereby assigning you to move your classroom across campus to room 72.." with this cheesy, half-hearted bunch of reasoning.
I approached him today and was livid, but tried to keep my emotions in check. I told him I felt lied to, treated like one of the students (he openly likes to tell us how he doesn't give the bad kids bad news until 2:50, right before they go home so they won't blow their tops on him), and that it was poor judgment and completely unprofessional to dump a major move on me with only two days left. He apologized for the tardiness on it, but fought hard telling me he never had promised me with the "I don't recall ever saying I wouldn't move you there" lie. I really made it clear to him that he DID say that.
I told him that I'm the senior staff member and that I found it really disrespectful that he'd take the veteran sixth grade teacher and send me to Siberia on the other side of the school and put the other teacher with the not-yet-hired sixth grade teacher together, playing us apart from one another. I felt disrespected and told him I've paid my dues in my career. He told me that I have an entitlement mentality and that he is doing what is in the "best interest of the school."
I called my deacon last night (also my godfather) who is also a principal in our district and knows my principal (and doesn't trust him one centimeter!), and he really gave me good counsel as to how this is an opportunity to take up my Cross, to not fight back with the same dirty tactics, to accept my situation, and to show dignity and grace in the process. My union president recommended I just suck it up, too.
Right now I'm praying. I'm trying to accept this. For people who are not teachers, trust me, moving an entire classroom is a NIGHTMARE! It's a lot like moving houses in a smaller setting. It's incredible how many books, materials, supplies, and overall junk you accumulate through the years, and how the sheer magnitude of it all is such a daunting task. I'm hurt by this, feel picked-on, and I'm just sad.
As an Orthodox Christian, I'm called to put my chin up, smile to the Lord, accept this whether it's fair or not, and march over to that classroom and keep on doing my best. So I ask you guys to please take a few minutes and remember old Scott (Joseph) in your prayers. Just ask the Lord not for mercy so much as to help me to accept my situation and to show humility rather than pride.
The end of the year is SUPER STRESSFUL. We have to close out cum files, we have barbecues, promotion ceremonies, registration for junior high, report cards and final assessments, cleaning up and going through an extensive checklist of checkout. Add to that the reality of kids being thoroughly insane at this point! To drop an "oh, by the way, pal, you have to move your classroom!" after I'm already almost done shutting mine down, well, it's hardcore.
Right now I'm trying to take care of 3 kids while my wife works graveyards as an RN, trying to cook dinner, dealing with that shoulder/back pain that I've had for 2 years now, and just trying to survive. At work I'm stressed and I'm bringing that home with me. Help me, friends, with your prayers.
One other caveat....
I usually have at least twenty or thirty kids come and visit me who are former students. They range from 7th grade all the way to college! Today, out of nowhere, I had a college student who was in my class back in 2006 come to see me. She told me I was the best teacher she has ever had to this day, and that I inspired and changed her life completely. She is majoring in criminology. She spoke to my class. She just popped in out of nowhere. Then Mark, a seventh grader and student of mine last year, popped in to my class and said, "Mr. A, honestly, your class completely radically changed how I look at life, what I want out of it, and where I'm headed. You really taught the fullness of a subject. I learned more about the Christian faith from you that all my catechism classes since I was a tiny kid. I still care about Church more because of your lessons and powerpoints and talks to us. And history was so alive in your class, something so powerful, now it's so boring at seventh grade. I miss your class. You're the best teacher alive." He was voted by hundreds of kids at his junior high most likely to succeed!
Then another student, now a wrestler and football player, 4.00 grades, headed to high school, came to see me. Tough kid, kind of macho, says, "Mr. A, you're the best teacher I've ever met. I miss your class."
So, it's like God tried to send me a message that my principal may think I'm spit, my the kids, the people we are truly there for, have been impacted and blessed by my work. And that's what matters.
Help me to see the good in what I'm doing rather than dwelling on my principal's treatment toward me.
Sorry to the long-winded post, everyone, but this has been a hellish couple of days for me. I need the prayers of my friends.
Blessings in ICXC,
Gurney
