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April 27, 2007

partially there

I got a phone call from Mark Dolan yesterday afternoon. He said he presented the case to the board, and they were "very interested" in having him pursue me for a position. YAY! *putting the excitement away again* Now we just need to have a face-to-face meeting. Scheduling that may be interesting. So, just keep praying for the way to remain smooth. And pray that I can take some afternoon time from work to meet with Mr. Dolan.

And thanks for all the prayers already offered--I do not underestimate them! :)

Posted by Renee at 10:01 PM | | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

April 23, 2007

more prayers; more prayers

Well, the phone call went well. We covered a lot, including my bane of classroom management. We talked about where I was when teaching there before, where I am now, where I would like to be. So, since the decision not to renew my contract was administrative, Mr. Dolan will be presenting the case for pursuing re-hiring me at the board meeting tomorrow night. Oh, the waiting...the waiting. Continued prayers are in order. I'm very happy that Mr. Dolan is pleased with the way our conversation went. He's completely behind me and will be completely behind me before the board. Praying. Praying.

Posted by Renee at 07:35 PM | | Comments (4) | TrackBacks (0)

pray pray pray

So I got a call from the principal of the classical school at which I worked a couple of years ago. They are looking for teachers for next year--including 5th and 6th grade which I taught before--and he wants to talk to me about possibly taking one of those positions. Guys--I was totally praying for this when I went to the silent auction a few weeks ago to show my face again. I really want this. I really want to be back in a classroom. I really love the school. I am really passionate about the classical model.

The things to pray for: that Mr. Dolan and I click (already on a good note since we're both Mac users); that when the issue of classroom management is addressed, it will be okay (that was the issue behind the non-renewal of my teaching contract, but the person leaning on that isn't there anymore and isn't Mr. Dolan); that I'm offered a contract for 5th and/or 6th grade (I don't really do younger grades). I really want this (I think I've said that already). I'm not ready to relocate, yet, and this is a perfect opportunity for me--it would be less money than I'm making now, but with much more soul-food. :)

Posted by Renee at 07:33 PM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

April 18, 2007

grateful I can write what I please

Cuban journalist sentenced to 4 years in jail (UPDATED)
Oscar Sanchez Madan

Cuban independent journalist has been sentenced to 4 years in prison, on a charge of being a "pre-criminal social danger," an Orwellian law the dictatorship uses to silence its critics and other troublemakers.

In Sanchez's case, it means he must have been doing his job as a journalist too well.

According to news reports, Sanchez, 44, who filed stories for CubaNet and other outlets, was arrested Friday, and shortly afterwards convicted and sentenced by a judge.

The dictatorship is nothing but efficient, when it comes to silencing its critics.

News of Sanchez's imprisonment was released Tuesday.

The secret police had its eye on Sanchez for a while. In early March, independent journalist Roberto Santana Rodríguez filed this report for CubaNet:

HAVANA, Cuba -March 1 (Roberto Santana Rodríguez / www.cubanet.org) - Independent journalist Oscar Sánchez said police in Matanzas picked him up February 25, took him to the station, and confiscated papers he had on him for the story he was working on.
Sánchez called the incident a reprisal by the Department of State Security for recent articles he had written about social problems in Matanzas, most prominently on alcoholism, AIDS, drug-addiction, and corruption by a government official in the town of Pedro Betancourt.

Sánchez said several officers questioned him while he was detained. They asked him whether he is an independent journalist, what is independent journalism, and whether he had studied journalism and how much he is paid.

The Cuban government licenses journalists and does not consider the independents to be journalists.

By my count, Sanchez becomes the 31st independent journalist imprisoned in the gulag — and at least the fourth since acting dictator Raúl Castro assumed his "temporary" powers on July 31.

To read about the others, click on the names to the left, under "March 18 Project."

UPDATED, 12:53 a.m. EDT

Independent journalist Tania Maceda Guerra reports that Sanchez, also the spokesman for the Alternative Option Independent Movement, was tried and convicted, without a defense lawyer or his family present. A police official informed his mother about what had happened, but she was not permitted to speak with her son, according to Maceda's story.

But Cuba has "universal" health care, that must make everything worth it.

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