I was walking to social function on Friday with some colleagues, and it was remarkably cool for June. We realized that the extended school year has been much more bearable, because there have been so few hot days this spring. I am sure I would be going crazy right now if it was in the 80s.
I have finally finished the sprint at the end of the race, in terms of work. For the last 3-4 weeks, I had several performance evaluations, finals to write, and an application for a National Board Certification support program.
The good news is that my evaluations have been positive and I have been assured I will be back next year (with tenure, whatever that is worth!).
I am very frustrated with the political system in Chicago and Illinois. The pension system outside of Chicago remains in jeopardy, with reform necessary to ensure the state does not go bankrupt - but the Illinois constitution prevents pensions from being reduced. A deal needs to be made, and whatever reductions/cutbacks they make to the state pension system will likely be levied on Chicago pensions with time. So I watch with anticipation.
The Chicago Board of Ed has been living on pension holidays for over 10 years now, failing each year to provide the proper amount of funding into the system. The holiday ends next year, and the district owes $600 million, compared to the $150 million they paid this year. That is a big chunk of change that will eat up budgets district-wide. We will be living through pain now because of years of living beyond our means. Despite a modest enrollment drop, Chicago has opened over 100 new schools in the last 15 years. It is no wonder they are willing to fight to close down schools now - it was not wise to invest all that money to open new schools without considering the long-term financial obligations of maintaining a bloated system.
In other school news, I will also have a student teacher from Michigan State last year. He will be with me for half of my day, from August through the end of April. I should have 3 chemistry and 2 biology classes - though the bio classes will be different preps.
Because of the time saved thanks to the student teacher, I decided to spend next year applying to become a National Board Certified Teacher. The process is a big, big pain but there is plenty of prestige, money, and the chance to grow a lot professionally through the process. I worked nonstop for 3 weeks on an application to select into the district support program. I turned in my 40 page application earlier this week, and I await feedback from them. The next step is a two week summer program in July to introduce me to the cohort.
Because I will be busy for those two weeks, and because the summer is shorter than the past, we decided to forego the long-desired bathroom renovation and focus on small projects instead. I am disappointed by this, but I have been using the upstairs bathroom for showers to take my mind off it.
When Rachel's Dad was in town, we started work on our new bedroom doors. I did finally get them installed - kind of. I actually have not finished the knob installation and there is some work with the trim that needs to be done to ensure the doors close properly. But they are good enough for now - and look way better than the white hollow door doors!
Today I spent the day working outside tearing up grass for the small patio we will install behind the garage. We will put our patio table and new umbrella there once it is done. I hope to take advantage of cool weather this weekend to get as much done as possible! I am looking forward to sipping some cool beverages out there in the evenings once it is done...
-alan
I have finally finished the sprint at the end of the race, in terms of work. For the last 3-4 weeks, I had several performance evaluations, finals to write, and an application for a National Board Certification support program.
The good news is that my evaluations have been positive and I have been assured I will be back next year (with tenure, whatever that is worth!).
I am very frustrated with the political system in Chicago and Illinois. The pension system outside of Chicago remains in jeopardy, with reform necessary to ensure the state does not go bankrupt - but the Illinois constitution prevents pensions from being reduced. A deal needs to be made, and whatever reductions/cutbacks they make to the state pension system will likely be levied on Chicago pensions with time. So I watch with anticipation.
The Chicago Board of Ed has been living on pension holidays for over 10 years now, failing each year to provide the proper amount of funding into the system. The holiday ends next year, and the district owes $600 million, compared to the $150 million they paid this year. That is a big chunk of change that will eat up budgets district-wide. We will be living through pain now because of years of living beyond our means. Despite a modest enrollment drop, Chicago has opened over 100 new schools in the last 15 years. It is no wonder they are willing to fight to close down schools now - it was not wise to invest all that money to open new schools without considering the long-term financial obligations of maintaining a bloated system.
In other school news, I will also have a student teacher from Michigan State last year. He will be with me for half of my day, from August through the end of April. I should have 3 chemistry and 2 biology classes - though the bio classes will be different preps.
Because of the time saved thanks to the student teacher, I decided to spend next year applying to become a National Board Certified Teacher. The process is a big, big pain but there is plenty of prestige, money, and the chance to grow a lot professionally through the process. I worked nonstop for 3 weeks on an application to select into the district support program. I turned in my 40 page application earlier this week, and I await feedback from them. The next step is a two week summer program in July to introduce me to the cohort.
Because I will be busy for those two weeks, and because the summer is shorter than the past, we decided to forego the long-desired bathroom renovation and focus on small projects instead. I am disappointed by this, but I have been using the upstairs bathroom for showers to take my mind off it.
When Rachel's Dad was in town, we started work on our new bedroom doors. I did finally get them installed - kind of. I actually have not finished the knob installation and there is some work with the trim that needs to be done to ensure the doors close properly. But they are good enough for now - and look way better than the white hollow door doors!
Today I spent the day working outside tearing up grass for the small patio we will install behind the garage. We will put our patio table and new umbrella there once it is done. I hope to take advantage of cool weather this weekend to get as much done as possible! I am looking forward to sipping some cool beverages out there in the evenings once it is done...
-alan
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