Here we go again!

Welcome aboard a new adventure.  I have just moved to Warsaw, Poland to begin work as a Co-Director of Digital Learning a the American School of Warsaw.  It is never an easy decision to move abroad and start a new chapter in life, but I am thrilled I took the leap and hope you will enjoy living along side me through this blog.  If you missed my Hungarian adventures, you can check out that blog here.  It was a great way to communicate the things I was experiencing to people around the world.  I hope to do the same in this space.

I first learned about this position opening from a friend (Amy K.) on Facebook.  It seemed like the pairing of two things I love, Eastern Europe and tech integration - a perfect position for me.  I applied, interviewed with two admins and the team I'd be joining and sat back and waited.  It so happened that at the same time I was in the midst of two additional job offers which was surprising and wonderful at the same time.  It's always nice to realize that there are folks out there who appreciate your skill set and abilities- and to be recognized for that.  When offered the job at ASW, I had to think about it as compared to the other two offers I had, and it just seemed like the best fit.  I am excited about the team I am joining- four of us doing digital learning coaching in one K-12 building? That is unheard of in my experience.

So I am here now, not without some blips in the process, but I am here.  I arrived yesterday afternoon and was able to attend a welcome dinner at the Middle School/High School Principals home.

Emily the orientation leader greeting us

a great spread of sushi - I didn't eat any of it, but it looked amazing!

It was a group of new to the school teachers coming from the US, Switzerland, Spain, China, India, Venezuela, Turkey, the Caribbean and so many more places.  What a wealth of experience we all bring.  I noticed when talking with teachers that there are a lot of support positions at this school as well.  Not only the technology aspect that I bring, but reading and learning specialists on top of support staff for all levels.  Everyone is very excited to be joining ASW and we all seem cool, so we've at least got that going for us.


Today we went to the mall to get sim cards for our phones and took a driving tour of Warsaw with Emily, one of the orientation leaders.  We're all in the midst of trying to secure housing, which has been no easy task so far.  There are cultural things that come into play here, but that's a different post :)