@mistyknight: I do and I belong to some. A lot of my research was helped by talking to people of color who have worked at schools of interest.

@Nomad, at this point I figure my skin is a liability in many places, but I'll take overt comments over the current liabilities of being who I am in the States.

That said, although I know it reduces my chances, I've only chosen to apply with schools of a certain caliber, checked their sites for people of color and asked around specifically about working there while Black. I'm sure my profile photo also helped some schools screen me out.

In any case, both of the places that are acting like they are close to an offer have a diversity in staff and leadership, so I'll take my chances.

@PsyGuy: I am only 37, so not quite ready to be where I'd like to retire yet. I'm thinking maybe one or more appointments after this one would be ideal, with a eye on quality education for my son as he gets older.

I'm far from lazy, but fewer preps would be better for me.

Thanks!

The IB is mixed MYP and DP at an Embassy school. The other school uses regular American curriculum and seems pretty open to having me either do AP Lit or train for AP French. Teaching with French as the medium of instruction shouldn't be an issue; the French portion of my interview was conducted fully in French, including educational philosophy and pedagogical scenarios. Plus I am a native speaker who keeps up with academic materials in the language.

Thanks for your advice; much of your thought process on this echoes my own. Now I just have to wait for everyone to return to work so I can move forward.

Well, here I am am mostly keeping to my timeline, though I have opened myself to more regions (ME and Asia) and I didn't end up getting to teach AP Lit, but I was tasked with starting up our French program (currently in year 1) in addition to my writing course load.

I received so much help here, I thought I'd keep my word and give an update.

First, the demand for French was much higher than I was expecting and it seems a plus that I can do English too.

Second, I ended up registering with Search. So far I sent in about 10 applications, had 3 interviews (from 1 Tier 1, 1 Embassy school, and 1 upper tier 2/lower tier 1 depending who's doing the ranking). Didn't get the first job, but received very positive feedback, and the other two definitely are "acting like they want me".

At this point I am wondering what's more valuable for the future: Position doing IB English (I have no IB experience yet) or position doing upper level English (possibly AP too) and French (which would then allow me to even out my French teaching experience)?

Happy Winter Break to all!

I message them through Search and mention that I applied directly to their HR.

Well, I could stand to lose 15 pounds.
In all seriousness, I appreciate the response as it did give me some things to consider.

Has anyone worked at newer schools (1-2 years old)? What did you find to be the pros and cons?

Thanks. I'm going to go ahead and take my chances.

I applied for a middle school position at a top (by my standards) school at the beginning of the month. The middle school principal contacted me within 4 days to set up an interview and then scheduled me with a follow-up the same week with the Department Head. I have reason to think both went well, but according to a current faculty member, they are notorious for taking their time to give decisions. The same school now has a high school position also matching one of my areas of certification. Would it be seen as a faux pas if I also applied to this position (it was not posted when I originally applied)? The application would go to a different principal, but I am not sure if there is a protocol for this kind of situation.

Thanks everyone. I went ahead and applied. I think I just needed to go ahead an take that first step.

When you find a vacancy of interest early in the recruiting season, do you apply right away or do you wait for other positions with potential? I'm apparently suffering from fear of missing out at the moment, so I thought experienced perspectives migh help.

Where I work though, elementary teachers don't have 150 students, nor are they expected to be subject area specialists. I think all levels have valid challenges that are hard to judge unless one has experienced them.

This conversation is quite enlightening. Here in my DS District in North America, I have had 2+ preps for at least the last 8 years. I'm looking at 3, maybe 4 next year. With so many IS being rather small, I assumed ISs would be more likely to have several preps.

For me, lack of minorities on the teaching staff is a red flag, unless there's a good reason for it. I'm just not looking to be a sideshow attraction or have to be "a credit to my people" at this point in my life. Lack of educational prions for my son would be a NO as well, and so would an area that isn't safe for women.