Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Big Changes

It has been a while since I posted, and in an effort to avoid my bedtime, I'm going to provide the general public with a brief synopsis of the last three months.

A week after my last post I finally moved into my friends condo. It has been a wonderful change in my life. I now live 10 min. from work, unless there is snow or an accident on Bangeter Hwy. I have two wonderful roommates that I have been able to hang out with & socialize with when I'm home. My roommates are also wonderful examples of thriftiness & I have been able to save more money than in previous years. I live in a wonderful area of town & I'm a part of a wonderful singles ward. I've been able to make a few friends in the last three months, in addition to the ones I already knew.

I had a wonderful christmas break & received a new camera for christmas. I looked forward to posting pictures from my new camera. But since school has resumed, I haven't found the time to learn my new camera & upload pictures. Hopefully soon, I'll make it a bigger priority.

The most recent change in my life is the decision to go back to school. I want to pursue a Masters in Education & Administration, so I may become a school principal or vice-principal someday. I'm not in a big hurry, but I know I can't teach my entire life & I already feel some "burn-out". I've run into a couple of obstacles since I decided, however. Once I decided I wanted to earn a Masters in Administration, I needed to decide which school to attend. Most programs start in the summer. My first choice became the University of Utah, but I discovered I had already missed the application deadline for the year. I can apply as a non-matriculated student, which means I can take up to 9 credits without being officially enrolled in the program. But it will mean the program will take 3 years instead of 2. It might be nice to spread the classes out, and relieve some stress while I'm also working full-time. But it will also mean more money in the long run. Another option is the University of Phoenix. It seems to be a "low-stress" program because I only take one class at a time, but it is completely on-line & I'm concerned about not having real people to talk to & attend class with. From the principals I've talked with, a big part of school is networking with other students who I may end up working with in the professional field. I'm currently looking into my final option, Utah State University. Apparently, they offer this program through their extension campuses, but I don't know any details yet. I hope to talk to someone in the department tomorrow. I've also run into some problems with my teaching level. All of the programs require a level 2 certificate, but I still have a level 1. Even though I have technically taught for 4 years, I've had some difficulty getting credit for the 2 years I taught at the charter school. I haven't tried to work out the details because I didn't have the need. But I may need to jump through that hoop before I can attend school. Don't you love government bureaucracies?

Anyway, there's a quick summary of my life. I'll try a do a better job of keeping th'blog updated.