Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I'm certified K-5, and decided to take the offer! I'm very excited!
jpktch-it's good to hear that I will most likely be offered a position rather than placed. Now I have to start sending my resumes.. Do you suggest sending them to a lot of schools to start out with or pick the top ones that I may want to work at and start there. Meaning, what are the chances of me be hired at one of the first schools I send my resume too?
As of now, I was looking along the right side of Fairfax County because of the distance to NJ. Approx. 3 hrs. Would you guys recommend going further into the county? And for what reasons?
From NJ to Fairfax County, it probably won't add or take away much wherever you are.
Where did HR tell you to look for vacancies? I'll look to see what I see.
JuneBug,
I was told to contact the principals of the schools that I am interested in--be proactive. Send your resume and a cover letter (I did this by email). Get a head start. I have been contacting principals since April even though the "official" hiring season does not start until July. I am certified K-6 and endorsed in a special area so I have that advantage as well. I have already met with two principals, interviewed with the head of my special area, and have two interviews set up in two weeks. One principal, from an excellent elementary school, practically trying to sell me on his school.
It is my understanding that Title 1 schools and priority schools (schools that are not making AYP but are not Title 1 schools) get first dibs on early hires. Nothing that they have said to me indicated that they will assign us to a school. It's just like any other process, I assume, you can interview until you find the school that fits.
Check into some areas of Fairfax Co. that you are interested in and contact as many principals as you can and where you would honestly be willing to commute. It's hard for me to give you any advice on where because I don't live up there yet, although I have done a lot of homework about the area and the schools.
Go to the FCPS website and go to "Schools and Centers", type in either the cities or schools that you are interested in, look at their profiles and demographics. You can learn a lot about them that way. In addition, I got some information from greatschools.org (I think it is .org) on high schools for my son but felt it wasn't entirely accurate. I know that Newsweek and, recently, the Washington Post publish the top high schools in the nation and FCPS high schools are among them. You may want to google top elementary schools in the US or in VA and see what pops up.
Another thing, since you are a first year teacher (you did say that, right?), let me tell you this...don't be scared of Title 1 schools. I have taught in very affluent schools, rural schools, and now I am in a Title 1 school in the South with 92% free and reduced lunch and I LOVE IT! I would teach in a Title 1 school any day of the week. Some of them do fine making AYP and they are some of the sweetest schools you can find.
Just FYI! Feel free to private message me if I can help you with anything else. Will you be at the social on the 10th? I will, so if you are then we can meet up and chat! :-)
I don't think that was meant to be sarcastic, but rather from someone who perhaps is not familiar with all the diversity this county has. We aren't the richest, or highest medium income, anymore, but are up there. What the general public doesn't see is exactly what you are talking about. We have a wealth of resources, but that doesn't translate into every child having the same background knowledge and support. Getting an early hire offer speaks well of the person and their potential. I hope they follow through on it as there's a lot of support and resources for new teachers, especially those who are in schools where the students need a lot of support.
It wasnt meant to be sarcastic i was unfamiliar with that county and under the assumption that if they were the richest county ( not the case anymore ) then there schools would be very nice..... Lesson learned: Never make assumptions
It wasnt meant to be sarcastic i was unfamiliar with that county and under the assumption that if they were the richest county ( not the case anymore ) then there schools would be very nice..... Lesson learned: Never make assumptions
It's an odd paradox. There is a LOT of money here, but it's not evenly distributed (of course), and it's clustered in a lot of pockets. So some neighborhood schools have very active PTAs, fundraisers, and educational support, while other schools draw from low income apartments and lack those bonuses.
Then there's the statistics that show the more educated you are, the less children you tend to have, so a large percentage of school aged children are from homes that aren't in that upper tax bracket.
That said, I absolutely love the school I'm at, despite the fact that it's from one of the less fortunate zones. I think they do a phenomenal job with the students, and I would be comfortable sending my own child there if it was ever a decision.
Thanks for the advice! Ill start narrowing down my town choices and sending my resumes!
Quote:
Originally Posted by jpktch
JuneBug,
I was told to contact the principals of the schools that I am interested in--be proactive. Send your resume and a cover letter (I did this by email). Get a head start. I have been contacting principals since April even though the "official" hiring season does not start until July. I am certified K-6 and endorsed in a special area so I have that advantage as well. I have already met with two principals, interviewed with the head of my special area, and have two interviews set up in two weeks. One principal, from an excellent elementary school, practically trying to sell me on his school.
It is my understanding that Title 1 schools and priority schools (schools that are not making AYP but are not Title 1 schools) get first dibs on early hires. Nothing that they have said to me indicated that they will assign us to a school. It's just like any other process, I assume, you can interview until you find the school that fits.
Check into some areas of Fairfax Co. that you are interested in and contact as many principals as you can and where you would honestly be willing to commute. It's hard for me to give you any advice on where because I don't live up there yet, although I have done a lot of homework about the area and the schools.
Go to the FCPS website and go to "Schools and Centers", type in either the cities or schools that you are interested in, look at their profiles and demographics. You can learn a lot about them that way. In addition, I got some information from greatschools.org (I think it is .org) on high schools for my son but felt it wasn't entirely accurate. I know that Newsweek and, recently, the Washington Post publish the top high schools in the nation and FCPS high schools are among them. You may want to google top elementary schools in the US or in VA and see what pops up.
Another thing, since you are a first year teacher (you did say that, right?), let me tell you this...don't be scared of Title 1 schools. I have taught in very affluent schools, rural schools, and now I am in a Title 1 school in the South with 92% free and reduced lunch and I LOVE IT! I would teach in a Title 1 school any day of the week. Some of them do fine making AYP and they are some of the sweetest schools you can find.
Just FYI! Feel free to private message me if I can help you with anything else. Will you be at the social on the 10th? I will, so if you are then we can meet up and chat! :-)
I had a phone interview with a HR rep for Art Education last week which seemed to go well. She told me to wait for the jobs in Fairfax to be posted July 1st and apply to them, noting that I did an initial interview. Has anyone else gone through this process? I would imagine that if I didn't do well, She would not tell me the next step. I am also certified in Special Education but have not received any contact regards to all the positions I applied to. I'm curious if the job market in VA is over flooded.
I should note I am a NY certified Teacher with 2 years of Special Education Full time teaching, many years of sub experience and 2 years of 4/5 PT experience teaching Art.
Thanks for any insight anyone could provide me or advice.
My family has decided to live in Herndon and send our son to school there. It is definitely far from the city but my husband's commute to DC will not be any worse than it was in McLean where he has been since Jan. 1 (he does the bus/metro). However, since I am an early hire, I have been getting countless calls and emails from schools in Falls Church and Alexandria. Most are Title 1 or priority so they got the early hire list first. I have had to turn down those interviews because they are too far for ME to commute. I have, however, contacted schools in the western part of the county and they have eagerly set up interviews. I am now waiting to hear from my first and second choices. I will work close to home, even if I have to wait for the July 1 openings list to come out and go from there. It was hard, though, trying to decide where to live. We just did a lot of driving and asking questions, etc. Our choice was more difficult because we have a son in high school and wanted him to be somewhere that he would be a person instead of a number among in a huge school of predominantly white rich kids (not meant as an insult, just a reflection of how low key and small town my family is!).
Good luck...hope you have gotten some interviews and have more of a feel for where you want to work and live. I would love to hear how it is going for you!
Anybody here who applied from March to July 2011 and got hired by FCPS? If you are, first of all Congratulations!
I was interviewed by 3 principals, one of them called me 3 days later and informed me that they picked somebody else. I appreciate him calling me at least I did'nt have to wait and wait for that position.
I still have 2 pending and still in limbo - waiting for that "I got the job" moment, the second one was 4 working days ago, and the third one was 3 working days ago.
I like the 3rd one very much, during the interview, they said I am free to email them to follow up about that position. I emailed them today. - no reply yet.
My question is how many days before they tell you that you got the job? If I did not hear from them for a week does that mean I did not get the job?
Who tells you that you got the job - does the HR call you or the Principal?
From the time HR informs you how long does it take for you to sign the contract?
You see, I applied to its nearby VA county, and I got the job offer already, but I haven't signed anything yet, because am waiting for FCPS. FCPS is my priority, the other county was a fall back because I can't afford not to have a job this year.
Landing on an FCPS teaching job is my dream.
I appreciate any information you will share. It will surely help anyone who is applying in FCPS right now.
If you don't mind me asking, how much experience do you have, and how did you go about applying for the position and receiving an offer? My fiance just graduated from college in Indiana in Elementary Education and recently moved to Northern Virginia with me. She applied to Fairfax, Loudoun, Arlington, Alexandria, etc. and hasn't heard anything yet...I'm guessing it's the lack of experience? Thanks!
She needs to be more proactive. Those are big counties and nothing will happen by itself. She should contact principals individually and send resumes. Once a principal is interested in her, she can worry about the other stuff, as long as she has submitted the basic paperwork.
The turn around time was pretty quick. The principal can't hire you, it has to come from HR. I took a few days to hear back from the principal, and then another week to hear from HR.
Quote:
Originally Posted by purplesun
Anybody here who applied from March to July 2011 and got hired by FCPS? If you are, first of all Congratulations!
I was interviewed by 3 principals, one of them called me 3 days later and informed me that they picked somebody else. I appreciate him calling me at least I did'nt have to wait and wait for that position.
I still have 2 pending and still in limbo - waiting for that "I got the job" moment, the second one was 4 working days ago, and the third one was 3 working days ago.
I like the 3rd one very much, during the interview, they said I am free to email them to follow up about that position. I emailed them today. - no reply yet.
My question is how many days before they tell you that you got the job? If I did not hear from them for a week does that mean I did not get the job?
Who tells you that you got the job - does the HR call you or the Principal?
From the time HR informs you how long does it take for you to sign the contract?
You see, I applied to its nearby VA county, and I got the job offer already, but I haven't signed anything yet, because am waiting for FCPS. FCPS is my priority, the other county was a fall back because I can't afford not to have a job this year.
Landing on an FCPS teaching job is my dream.
I appreciate any information you will share. It will surely help anyone who is applying in FCPS right now.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Lesson learned: Never make assumptions 
