An Unexpected Turn

It's been a busy week at work. Thursday on short notice, I was called to a meeting.

At the time, it was merely one more thing. I was curious, but it wasn't something that preyed often among my thoughts. I told Matt (my work friend), and he guessed I was going to be asked to switch subjects next year. I'd offered in September.

I reported into the guidance director's office, but then she took me into the head principal's office.

There I was told I was being de-staffed.



What is de-staffing?

De-staffing is not being fired. It's being told "There are too many teachers of a certain type here and you're considered the one with the least seniority."

I was very surprised.

My principal was too.

He told me straight out he did not expect to be talking to me. He said he expected to talk to someone else.

"We told Tammy (my department chair) after school yesterday and she freaked out," he said.

I've worked for the county ten years: 1.5 as a substitute, 0.5 as an assistant, and then 8 years as a teacher. The last six years I've been at my current school. I like to think I'm fairly well known. I have a bright red beard, sport a kilt, and I spend the majority of my day running from class to class and teacher to teacher.

Seniority is not determined by how long a teacher has been at a school, though. It's determined by how long a teacher has been with employed by the county based on the day their contract was first offered. There were three teachers, including me, who were all offered contracts on the same day: 8/28/2006. I don't know if I signed my contract later than the others or if their's were processed by someone working a little faster than whoever was on mine.

Regardless, someone was going to get the de-staffing letter. I can't say I was thrilled to find out A) there was a letter and B) it had my name on it, but it's not the end of the world or a reason to panic. It means there's a lot of uncertainty ahead, but I have faith God has a plan. Prayers for peace along the way are appreciated, though!

How do staffing formulas work?

Everything is done by a formula. Schools are allotted a certain amount of teacher positions based upon the student population. More kids means more teachers. Conversely, less students (and a smaller budget allocating more students per teacher) means less teachers.

The projected enrollment numbers supported one less position for a Category A Special Education Teacher at my school.

My principal mentioned that there were some other de-staffings that were happening, as well. I don't know who or even in what department, but it's possible we're collateral damage from the recent budget problems.

If being de-staffed doesn't mean being unemployed, what does it mean?

If a teacher is de-staffed, the county guarantees them a job.

It doesn't guarantee that the job is one that anyone else wants or a reasonable commute from their homes.

Next Monday, the list of teacher vacancies will be posted.

The following Monday, there is a transfer fair for interviews. Any current teacher in the county can apply for a transfer, de-staffed or otherwise. That means competition.

It also means more uncertainty. If a non-de-staffed teacher accepts a transfer a new vacancy opens up that must be filled. It can quickly become a flurry. I don't think it has been as much of one in prior years due to people worrying about the budget, but with de-staffings and position eliminations on the horizon it may be more frantic this year.

At the end of May, any de-staffed teachers who have not found a transfer spot will be placed. If you're placed, it means that the County looks at the holes no one was able to fill and assigns you one of them.

What does this mean for me?

I need to polish up my resume.

My school has announced that they're going to do whatever they can to keep me, but there are no guarantees. If anyone transfers, I may be able to slide into their slot. If more students with disabilities enroll the staffing formulas may allocate another teacher contract to my school.

If that doesn't happen, I DON'T want to be placed. My county is very large and the roads are filled with cars. Carrie's current job is dependent on me being able to assume child care duties when I'm off, so that she can report in.

I've always said I wanted to at least try teaching at all different levels (elementary, middle, and high); This may force me to move on that earlier than planned. I was very comfortable in my current classroom. I have great friends, great support, and good memories there (whenever the crap wasn't hitting the fan at least!).

I'm in a fairly good spot. I'm certified to teach in a wider variety of position than my current one and I know I have strong references. My department chair has already contacting people she knows who want me to send my resume (before the vacancies are even posted nonetheless!). Unfortunately, where she's most connected was hit with three de-staffings themselves.

The whole situation is very up in the air. I could be leaving; I may not. I could find a great new position or dabble in something new; I could end up somewhere I'd rather not.

The way I look at: my job here is to not panic, do my job as best as I can, and move forward with faith that all things happen for a reason. If anyone asks how I can be calm, I'll tell them that all things happen for a reason!

From now on, I'll be able to sympathize with anyone being de-staffed and be able to relate my experience. It's one more story added to the script of my life. What's a good story without some conflict?

How's Carrie taking it?

Needless to say, Carrie was upset on my behalf. She pointed out that "I don't deserve this!" and that she was sad because she knew I liked my school. She would have probably marched into the office to have words if I'd have let her!

She was (of course) the first person I told. She only got to hear over email after all my classes were done, though. I had a job to do, and I knew she'd worry. I didn't want anyone else to hear before she did and Matt knew I had a meeting of some sort, so I made sure to contact her once I got to my planning time.

How's Shane taking it?

"Dad! I want to play Perry!" Shane said.

He's unfazed.

How has this changed the rest of my school year?

Matt had a cup of Starbucks waiting for me when I walked in today. Good friends are hard to come by.

Good coffee is, too. I got a free cup out of it, so there's something to be thankful for! We were out of milk this morning, so it couldn't have come at a better time.

I feel a little like a dead man walking. Not so much in how I feel, but how I perceive people feel about knowing I'm going to disappear. I think many people expect newer teachers to be de-staffed. I've been around long enough it's made more than a few nervous.

The word is out. It's not everywhere, but it's amazing how quickly some news spreads.

I heard Thursday and the department met Thursday. I didn't go, because I had to cover Guitar Club. Around this time every year we're told to be flexible and that changes are coming that "some of you may not like, but we expect you to be professional about it!"

This time they said, "There are going to be changes next year and people are going to be moved around; Mike's been de-staffed."

I hadn't told anyone yet. I'd only been told myself a little over three hours prior.

The announcement worked for me! It was another surprise, but I didn't care to hide anything. I didn't really care to walk up and mention "Hey, I've been de-staffed' to anyone either. I would have had to, because there are people I work with who would have been offended if they thought I was didn't trust them to tell or that I told someone else first, blah, blah, blah, so the news being dropped at the department meeting suited me just fine.

Today, I mentioned it to one of my co-teachers and she already knew. She'd been too polite (or too worried) to bring it up. I mentioned it to someone else and they told me they'd contact people they knew at another middle school. I'm going to need to update my resume from the tech slant and start getting it out. I had one request today, but I've been so busy taking care of business that I didn't have the chance to do it yet.

In summary:

I wrote a lot, so if you scrolled all the way down you are forgiven. It's probably what I'd do! Everything is up in the air, but I have to polish up my resume and do my due diligence. It looks like change is afoot, but there's no need to panic yet.

I'd appreciate a prayer for guidance and God's will to be done and I'll write more when I know more.