Well it has been about 6 months since I returned from my challenging and life changing adventure in Ethiopia. Despite some difficult experiences while I was there, I still have moments where I miss Ethiopia a lot. I fell in love with the culture and made some really close and dear friends. Someday I’ll go back and visit them. Ethiopia is a beautiful country with a RICH and DEEP culture and history. If anyone is looking for an adventure, I recommend traveling to Ethiopia, especially if you spend most of your time in the rural areas of the North and the South. The North has a RICH history. It is said that the Ten Commandments are located in Axum, where a monk guards them. I didn’t get time to travel to the North, so when I go back that is the SECOND thing on my list of things to do- the first thing is to go to Addis and visit all of my friends. : )
Anyways, that is a chapter in my life that is closed, but will hopefully be re-visited in the future. Now I am moving on to another chapter…MISSISSIPPI! I got accepted to Teach For America (if you are interested in learning more about TFA, here is the link- http://teachforamerica.org/ ).
Schedule: I will fly down to Mississippi June 4th. I will be in Mississippi for 4 or 5 days of induction, where I will learn about the culture and demographics and need in Mississippi. I will also get a chance to interview with 3 or 4 principles, with the hope of being offered a job. I got accepted to TFA as an elementary teacher, but I still have to get hired by a school. (TFA facilitates it, and everyone who was accepted is pretty much guaranteed to get hired…) After the 5 days in Mississippi, I will caravan over to Houston, Texas where I will live for 5 weeks and have INTENSIVE training- with the goal of receiving my emergency credentials at the end of training. Once training is over, I will caravan BACK to Mississippi…by then I will know exactly what district and grade level I will be teaching. I will meet my parents in MI (they are going to bring my car down with all of my stuff) and I will have about two weeks to find a place to move into before school STARTS!
Sounds crazy, I know. I’m really praying I’ll make some quality friends during institute that will be able to be roommates! Anyways, right now I’m in Seattle preparing for this adventure. I have a LOT of reading to do as well as some classroom visits. Honestly I don’t know what to expect AT ALL. I’m going with an open mind and heart, and a willing spirit. I’m a little nervous about getting through the intensive training in Houston and finding quality people to be able to live with. There are a lot of unknowns. Right now all I can do is move forward and trust God to guide.
I would appreciate your prayers and encouragement as I begin this new and exciting chapter in my life. I hear that the first year of teaching is pretty difficult, so I ask for your love and support in this next year. I feel so blessed that I have such a loving and supportive community that I can depend on. Thank you so much.
Much love,
Dana
About Me
- journeywithme
- I am a recent grad from Azusa Pacific University. I received my B.A. in Global Studies. Currently I am working for Teach For America. I am a 6th grade math teacher in Greenwood, MS.
2 comments:
I used to teach in Mississippi (see my May 2 blog entry) but that was forever ago. I'm now in Oregon, and very glad that I'm not going South at this time of year. I do wish I could get back more often though. My wife goes at least once a year to see family, but I have no family to see, and I would hate to leave our two dogs to go with her. Maybe when we're dogless again, someday...
i really wish you luck when you start teaching in the mississippi delta. i know how tough the schools can be for teachers. it'll be a 'make or break' situation. some towns in mississippi have wonderful schools, and some, mostly in the delta, have horrible ones. i hope you'll be able to make a difference.
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