Why I am staying at NHEHS

Last year, I made the huge leap across the pond, and the excitement of the change lasted for a good 3 months.  When it wore off, I got lonely and depressed, not to mention a bit worried that the risk I took was not going to pay off.  One benefit to pulling off big changes, whether or not they work, is that every subsequent challenge is accompanied by the thought of "well, now what do I do about this?" If you can identify the problem, you can find a solution.  I clearly didn't feel quite like I fit in, both in my school and my town, so I changed both.  To change it, I had to accept a one year contract in London, but I had a great feeling about the school.  I figured after this year, I could make a clear decision on whether or not to go back to the USA.

As it turns out, I am staying in London.  My gut feeling about NHEHS was spot on, as was my hunch that I'd enjoy living in London.  I assumed that the maternity cover position I had would necessarily limit my time in this school, but my bosses and colleagues seem to really like me, as do my students.  So, they offered me a permanent position, and I accepted their offer.

I still miss my family and my friends immensely, and I have promised my parents that I'll visit more often next year, but I feel more at home right now than I've felt in years.  "Home" means many different things.  When anyone asks where I am from, I say Pittsburgh.  That is where I was raised and where my family still lives, so that will always be home in some sense.  My best friends are all within a couple hours of Washington DC, so when I tell my students stories from "back home," I am usually thinking about there.  When I say I feel at home here in London, I mean that in a pretty selfish way.  All of my passions and interests are being indulged right now.  As I discover new interests, this city provides a way for me to explore them.  Still, if I didn't love my school, I'd probably go back to the USA.  I mostly feel at home because of NHEHS.  Here are a few things I love about it, in no particular order:

• My teaching is judged on its effectiveness, not its style.  I probably talk too much, but only because I'm a damn good talker.
• My students make me feel loved.  Either they really like me or they are really good liars.
• Students take every comment of mine to heart.  It makes me feel like I am Yoda.
• Jenny, my head of department, takes every question seriously and never makes me feel dumb for asking so many of them.
• Jenny makes it clear that she's very happy I'm here.
• Lucinda, my head of school, makes it clear that she's very happy I'm here. 

Let me pause for a second there to reiterate how important those last two things are.   It has been several years since I felt both respected and appreciated at work.  That feeling, more than anything else, is reason enough to stay at NHEHS for a while.  For anyone reading this, if you enjoy your job and feel respected and appreciated there, stay.  It is rarer and more important than you might imagine.  If that joy, respect, or appreciation isn't there, look for a new place to work. Don't necessarily quit, but definitely look.  You owe it to yourself to look.  Back to my list.

• My students ask for more homework.  Those are the kinds of students I have.  
• My students wait outside the door until I let them in, and they wait at the end of class for me to dismiss them.  They are amazingly respectful girls. 
• My students are genuinely interested in my stories, and not just the ones that are clearly tangential to the actual lesson.  Those, too, and they do love peppering me with questions about America, but I mean the physics stories.  Once or twice, they've been riveted by my stories. It makes me feel like Carl Sagan.
• My school has assemblies and in-service days that are generally useful.  This is a novel concept. We have a 20 minute assembly three days a week, and it is generally an open forum for any teacher, group of teachers, or group of students to run.  They will share stories of trips and adventures, advertise clubs, give timely advice, and sometimes go over current events.  I even helped run one dedicated to little ways to stay positive in the dark days of winter.  The in service days are always scheduled for the very beginning of term, giving a nice way of easing back into the routine of coming to work.  The in service days, therefore, are always partly a joy.
• So many people thank me for little things I do.  The thank-yous I receive seem disproportionate to the size of my contribution, which shows you why I feel so appreciated.  For example, I volunteered last minute to help with that assembly, and my contribution consisted of five minutes telling happy stories and advertising smiley cookies.  I was complimented and thanked for this far more times than I probably deserved that day.  I helped a little bit with the sound for the play, and I added a pair of hands on set construction day, and I received heaps of appreciation far greater than I probably earned.  This is how you make someone want to help even more.
• I get to focus primarily on physics.  People ask me for help with a field trip here and a photo contest there, and I oblige, but I am not overwhelmed with responsibilities outside my training. Anytime a new responsibility was handed to me, as has been necessary when one staff member quit and an other became seriously ill, every effort was made to make sure I was given a helping hand whenever necessary.  

Being surrounded by great students, great colleagues, and great bosses, I know I am a lucky man right now.  I am staying put for at least another year.