Open Forum

I'm in your shoes but perhaps a bit ahead of you. Get in touch. Reach me through EducationalStages.com

Chip Rome

------------------------------
Douglas Rome
Director of Theatre Arts
Fairfax County Public Schools
Burke VA

Original Message:
Sent: 01-09-2017 13:11
From: Jan Jensen
Subject: continuing career question

Hello Beautiful Forum Folks,

I recently retired from being drama director and have begun to think about my own Act 2.   Or should I say Act 3?

I have always loved teaching  creative drama and improvisation more than any other topic and would like to to more.  I have taught at some local theatres  in addition to the school.  I also love and have lots of experience as a storyteller.

I am thinking about starting my own classes or business at local schools.

I would love to know ideas you may have or what you have done whether retired or not.  Pitfalls to avoid are more than welcome.

Thank you very much for your help,

Jan Jensen

I just want to say thank you to whomever first started this thread and asked this question.  I know I'm about 2 years from retirement and there are so many things I want to do that I had to put off while teaching high school theatre, that it actually seems overwhelming with all of the possibilities.   Thanks Gai for saying first "sleep late" and "have coffee in bed."  I now have a starting place and I'm sure that extra sleep will put everything in perspective!

------------------------------
Holly Thompson
Worthington OH

Original Message:
Sent: 01-10-2017 07:17
From: Douglas Rome
Subject: continuing career question

I'm in your shoes but perhaps a bit ahead of you. Get in touch. Reach me through EducationalStages.com

Chip Rome

------------------------------
Douglas Rome
Director of Theatre Arts
Fairfax County Public Schools
Burke VA

Original Message:
Sent: 01-09-2017 13:11
From: Jan Jensen
Subject: continuing career question

Hello Beautiful Forum Folks,

I recently retired from being drama director and have begun to think about my own Act 2.   Or should I say Act 3?

I have always loved teaching  creative drama and improvisation more than any other topic and would like to to more.  I have taught at some local theatres  in addition to the school.  I also love and have lots of experience as a storyteller.

I am thinking about starting my own classes or business at local schools.

I would love to know ideas you may have or what you have done whether retired or not.  Pitfalls to avoid are more than welcome.

Thank you very much for your help,

Jan Jensen

Evolving from Full-Time Theatre Educator to an Encore Career

The thoughts below are by no means comprehensive. They are ideas which I have tried. Please accept my suggestions as creative brainstorming possible next steps for you. I invite anyone to contribute more suggestions.

To evolve, it helps to

*sleep late

*have coffee in bed

*leave unrestricted options open for six months before committing to any binding contracts

*learn to say “no” to projects that do not allow free time

*journal your thoughts and feelings about the process

*go to a movie during a mid-day afternoon

*take an hour for lunch with wine

*go to the restroom without waiting for a dismissal bell

*go outside and see what the world looks like in daylight

*meet a loved one for coffee

*celebrate your successes

*look through your cards, memory books

*catch up with social media to hear from former students

*see productions of plays that you could never do with youth

*read new plays with adult-type subject matters and language

*do water aerobics with your loved one/friends

*develop staged readings for you and your actor friends

*weed your files

*keep in contact with your adult children and grandkids, nieces, nephews

*garden/bake (I do neither, but you might love doing one or both)

*get your dog certified as a pet therapist

*create lists of Tips and Best Practices for other Theatre Educators

*blog for Edutopia and other Theatre education websites

*watch wonderful documentaries

*read

*become an advocate for sequential Theatre Education K-12 in your community

*remember that you are an expert who believes in continuing the learning process

*change your EdTA membership category to Emeritus

*donate what you feel you can to EdTA scholarships and pay it forward.

Now after six months of being able to say “yes” to what I think progresses my personal happiness mission in life-my Encore Career, I have undertaken the following projects:   teaching workshops at state and national conferences; serving on my chapter’s board; reach out to local high schools and community theatres to direct; develop PDIs for Theatre Educators and get the course work approved by a university so that teachers can get units for attending conferences; recruit my husband, a retired high school counselor, to join a senior theatre performing group and perform every other week in elementary schools; develop Off the Page Players with a group of actors to adapt and stage local elementary school children’s writings; direct MTI Jr versions for a local arts elementary school; record for the Blind; create a summer environmental Theatre workshop and production and get my grandkids involved; audition for commercials and staged radio shows; write some Theatre Ed books; self-publish; submit to publishing companies and be ready to revise after rejection letters; volunteering for state  VandPA standards focus groups; judge at Theatre festivals; become a SAG/AFTRA voter for awards and view many DVDs; establish a scholarship in my name at my high school from which I retired to honor Thespian citizens; remembering that there are younger Theatre educators who do not benefit by hearing my, “When I . . .”; create a Summer Theatre Teacher Bootcamp;  continue to enjoy life.

------------------------------
Gai Jones
gai.jones@sbcglobal.net
gai@gaijones.com

www.gaijones.com
Co-Founder/Faculty Member Summer Theatre Teacher Bootcamp
Inspirational Speaker for PD, Student Leaderships, Conferences
RAISING THE CURTAIN www.perfectionlearning.com
BREAK A LEG, A LOVE LETTER TO THEATRE EDUCATORS AND STUDENTS www.gaijones.com
THE STUDENT ACTOR PREPARES: ACTING FOR LIFE www.intellectbooks.com e-Book on Amazon
CURTAIN GOIN' UP...TRUISMS AND TIPS FOR COMMUNITY THEATER ACTORS, DIRECTORS, TECHNICIANS AND OTHER VOLUNTEERS www.gaijones.com https://www.facebook.com/GaiJonesTheatreEducator

Original Message:
Sent: 01-09-2017 13:11
From: Jan Jensen
Subject: continuing career question

Hello Beautiful Forum Folks,

I recently retired from being drama director and have begun to think about my own Act 2.   Or should I say Act 3?

I have always loved teaching  creative drama and improvisation more than any other topic and would like to to more.  I have taught at some local theatres  in addition to the school.  I also love and have lots of experience as a storyteller.

I am thinking about starting my own classes or business at local schools.

I would love to know ideas you may have or what you have done whether retired or not.  Pitfalls to avoid are more than welcome.

Thank you very much for your help,

Jan Jensen

Hi Gai,  I wonder if I could ask you how you went about getting "the course work approved by a university so that teachers can get units for attending"?  I am currently teaching an online course on High School Theatre Management for Drama teachers and technicians, which I have based on a "Canvas" online model a lot of universities use, and most of my students have asked if they can get clock hours for the course.  I am in the process of researching how they can do that, and I saw your post.  Any info on the process would be really appreciated!  Thanks!

------------------------------
Beth Rand
Author of "High School Theatre Operations"
High School Theatre Manager and HS Theatre Management Coach and Instructor
PRESETT, a service of RCDTheatreOps
www.PRESETT.org
Woodinville, WA

Original Message:
Sent: 01-10-2017 20:01
From: Gai Jones
Subject: continuing career question

Evolving from Full-Time Theatre Educator to an Encore Career

The thoughts below are by no means comprehensive. They are ideas which I have tried. Please accept my suggestions as creative brainstorming possible next steps for you. I invite anyone to contribute more suggestions.

To evolve, it helps to

*sleep late

*have coffee in bed

*leave unrestricted options open for six months before committing to any binding contracts

*learn to say “no” to projects that do not allow free time

*journal your thoughts and feelings about the process

*go to a movie during a mid-day afternoon

*take an hour for lunch with wine

*go to the restroom without waiting for a dismissal bell

*go outside and see what the world looks like in daylight

*meet a loved one for coffee

*celebrate your successes

*look through your cards, memory books

*catch up with social media to hear from former students

*see productions of plays that you could never do with youth

*read new plays with adult-type subject matters and language

*do water aerobics with your loved one/friends

*develop staged readings for you and your actor friends

*weed your files

*keep in contact with your adult children and grandkids, nieces, nephews

*garden/bake (I do neither, but you might love doing one or both)

*get your dog certified as a pet therapist

*create lists of Tips and Best Practices for other Theatre Educators

*blog for Edutopia and other Theatre education websites

*watch wonderful documentaries

*read

*become an advocate for sequential Theatre Education K-12 in your community

*remember that you are an expert who believes in continuing the learning process

*change your EdTA membership category to Emeritus

*donate what you feel you can to EdTA scholarships and pay it forward.

Now after six months of being able to say “yes” to what I think progresses my personal happiness mission in life-my Encore Career, I have undertaken the following projects:   teaching workshops at state and national conferences; serving on my chapter’s board; reach out to local high schools and community theatres to direct; develop PDIs for Theatre Educators and get the course work approved by a university so that teachers can get units for attending conferences; recruit my husband, a retired high school counselor, to join a senior theatre performing group and perform every other week in elementary schools; develop Off the Page Players with a group of actors to adapt and stage local elementary school children’s writings; direct MTI Jr versions for a local arts elementary school; record for the Blind; create a summer environmental Theatre workshop and production and get my grandkids involved; audition for commercials and staged radio shows; write some Theatre Ed books; self-publish; submit to publishing companies and be ready to revise after rejection letters; volunteering for state  VandPA standards focus groups; judge at Theatre festivals; become a SAG/AFTRA voter for awards and view many DVDs; establish a scholarship in my name at my high school from which I retired to honor Thespian citizens; remembering that there are younger Theatre educators who do not benefit by hearing my, “When I . . .”; create a Summer Theatre Teacher Bootcamp;  continue to enjoy life.

------------------------------
Gai Jones
gai.jones@sbcglobal.net
gai@gaijones.com

www.gaijones.com
Co-Founder/Faculty Member Summer Theatre Teacher Bootcamp
Inspirational Speaker for PD, Student Leaderships, Conferences
RAISING THE CURTAIN www.perfectionlearning.com
BREAK A LEG, A LOVE LETTER TO THEATRE EDUCATORS AND STUDENTS www.gaijones.com
THE STUDENT ACTOR PREPARES: ACTING FOR LIFE www.intellectbooks.com e-Book on Amazon
CURTAIN GOIN' UP...TRUISMS AND TIPS FOR COMMUNITY THEATER ACTORS, DIRECTORS, TECHNICIANS AND OTHER VOLUNTEERS www.gaijones.com https://www.facebook.com/GaiJonesTheatreEducator

Original Message:
Sent: 01-09-2017 13:11
From: Jan Jensen
Subject: continuing career question

Hello Beautiful Forum Folks,

I recently retired from being drama director and have begun to think about my own Act 2.   Or should I say Act 3?

I have always loved teaching  creative drama and improvisation more than any other topic and would like to to more.  I have taught at some local theatres  in addition to the school.  I also love and have lots of experience as a storyteller.

I am thinking about starting my own classes or business at local schools.

I would love to know ideas you may have or what you have done whether retired or not.  Pitfalls to avoid are more than welcome.

Thank you very much for your help,

Jan Jensen