The most asked questions I hear when I tell people that I am going to be teaching in Venezuela this fall are:
- How did you even hear about this job?
- Why Venezuela?
- How long have you been thinking of doing this?
- What will you be doing?
- How long will you be there?
Living overseas has been something I have dreamt of for a long time. I wasn't sure that it would ever happen or that I would still want to live overseas when I was older so I didn't talk about this dream very much. At school, I would often hear from missionaries and others that had lived overseas, and I was always inspired and felt the call to serve abroad. As I got older, I realized that going overseas right after college might not be the best idea due to student loans and how hard the transition would be, so I pushed this desire even further back in my mind.
This fall, one of my professors invited to bring us to a job fair in February for the Network of International Christian Schools (NICS). I decided to go, figuring that it would be good experience, force me to have my resume ready, and be something that I might be interested in doing in a few years. At this job fair, we heard updates from each of the schools and then had the chance to walk around and visit the booths of the 21 different schools. While walking around, I signed up for interviews at two different schools, even though I didn't think that I would actually end up at either school. In fact, I kept monitoring the sign-up sheets to make sure that they did not fill up because I wanted to leave spots for others who were really wanting a position. Well, they didn't fill up, so I went to the two interviews and just talked about the positions, schools, and myself with the directors.
Over the next few weeks, I kept praying about where I should teach the next year and where I should apply. The director from ICS Caracas emailed me saying that while he was considering one candidate, he wouldn't mind talking with me as a back-up. I began asking him more questions about the school and started talking with two different teachers at the school.
Ultimately, through lots of prayer and discussion with the director, teachers, my family, and others, I decided to accept the position teaching 4th and 5th grade at International Christian School - Caracas. The contract is for two years, and I should have 10-15 students next year. The students are from the international, missionary, and Venezuelan communities. While the school is a Christian school, that does not necessarily mean that all of my students and their families are Christians, but it gives me the opportunity to share Christ with them through Bible class and our relationships.
I am very excited to be teaching at ICS Caracas next year. It will have its share of challenges as would any first year teaching job, but I know that God called me to teach there for a reason. I would appreciate your prayers as I serve and teach in Venezuela. I am also raising some financial support since I am only given a partial salary. If you are interested in partnering with me through prayer or financial support, check out the information under the tabs at the top of this blog.
