Connections...
They Get You There!

Connections... they get you there! Have you ever been to a major city with public transportation, such as New York City? In most cases, it's easier to take the public transportation than it is to drive your own car. However, if you are from a small town, or have never had the opportunity to take public transportation, then the proverbial "learning curve" is almost straight up! If you refuse to learn, you could wind up lost, or in a very undesirable situation... It might even become dangerous! If you study your situation through maps, directive signs and questioning, you will greatly increase the success of your journey.

Connections are very important. Sometimes in a city like New York, one has to go with the "transportation" flow. Sometimes a connection to another bus or subway is needed during your journey, but using the wrong connection will lengthen your trip, wasting your time. Sometimes music teachers new to education or new to a school can feel like a weary traveler left in New York City without maps or guides, not knowing the correct sequence of connections to get them to where they desire to go!

GET A GOOD HANDBOOK FOR YOUR JOURNEY
Before traveling to a large city, you will need the "low down" on that city, so you might consider purchasing a good travel book full of suggestions and descriptions of places and people you may be traveling to and meeting (There are websites too). These books and websites are full of information to make the traveler more knowledgeable (Make sure to get an up-to-date printing of the book). New music teachers in the State of Kansas have an invaluable resource similar to a good travel book, which will help provide knowledge to situations and answers to many questions. It is called the New Music Teacher Handbook (NTH). This New Music Teacher Handbook is located at ksmea.org/mentoring/handbook and it is tied to the Kansas Music Educators Association website. The NTH is full of music education tips and information about teaching music, and has many links to music education websites. This is a webpage that must be perused by all new music teachers in the State of Kansas (It's even helpful to teachers who have taught a while).

At this point, (before reading further) take a moment and go to the web page located at ksmea.org/mentoring/graduate.php. This web page is titled "Graduates & New Teachers," and is part of the KMEA website. On this page graduates and new teachers can fill out a quick form, which will allow you to join the KMEA Music Mentoring Program. After you submit the form, you will be contacted by the mentor chair in your District to help start you on the path to a successful career in music education in the state of Kansas.

YOU ARE PART OF THE COMMUNITY, BUT REMEMBER...
Highly traveled places like New York City thrive on travelers, they are the life-blood of the economy, and they help diversify the culture of that city as much as the people living there. But remember... as a traveler you are new to the area. People expect for you to make mistakes and ask questions. They know you don't know it all, but keeping a positive attitude and being a flexible person will help you tremendously. Just as a music teacher new to education or your new position at a new school, you must adopt this same attitude. Expect to ask questions, expect to humble yourself a little bit, admit when you do not know what you should do next. (Obviously, you need to find answers and not keep committing the same mistakes over and over... you must do a lot of studying, before and after the first day of school). If you need to take on a few extra duties at first, do it (Don't overload... just a few). Your principal and colleagues will want to see who you are. If you do not know what you are doing or get in over your head but refuse to ask questions, they will quickly make judgments about you, and that can lead to a less than perfect performance your first year.

TURN ON YOUR GPS!
Let us know where you are... Making the connection to you is sometimes half the battle, just like a GPS unit will tell you where you are in proximity to a place you are going. KMEA does not have a GPS unit that automatically reads... "Alert! Alert! A new teacher in a Kansas school!" Truth is... There is no list published informing KMEA of the new teachers in new positions in the state of Kansas. Let us know where you are, so we know how to get you connected to all you need to know. Holly Taylor and Kelly Knedler are the State Mentoring Co-Chairpersons for KMEA (That's us). We are always available for questions or comments. BUT, for help a little closer to home, each of the six districts of KMEA have a Mentor Chairperson. Please contact your KMEA District Mentor Chair listed below, whether or not you have a question. Just having that connection will tremendously help you. Again, do not hesitate to contact us with any questions.

NORTHEAST:
Maggie McKain; nementoring [at] ksmea.org

NORTHWEST:
Dr. Jeff Jordan; nwmentoring [at] ksmea.org

NORTH CENTRAL:
Nancy Monical; ncmentoring [at] ksmea.org

SOUTHEAST:
Rosie Sweaney; sementoring [at] ksmea.org

SOUTHWEST:
Lynn Unruh; swmentoring [at] ksmea.org

SOUTH CENTRAL:
Amy Brown; scmentoring [at] ksmea.org

MAKE SURE TO INCLUDE THE ISW IN THIS YEAR'S ITINERARY
When we plan a trip there are reasons we go. Along the way we usually list a few "must see" stops. In New York City it might be Times Square, A Broadway Show, and The Empire State Building. Your first year of teaching should include the "must see" stop of The KMEA In-Service Workshop in Wichita, Kansas. This annual event will be held in downtown Wichita at Century II, February 27-March 1, 2014. This three-day event is one of the most helpful events of the year, especially to the teacher new to education or the state of Kansas. At this convention event, KMEA will host many performance groups and seminars. The KMEA Mentoring program will sponsor a seminar about surviving in the classroom called "In The Trenches," as well as a New Teacher Luncheon, which is absolutely free to new teachers (separate registration required, starting in November)! We encourage all KMEA districts to get the word out on any mentoring event, which may be hosted in your district. Maybe there is a topic or seminar that you would like to know more about and could included in the KMEA ISW? If so, contact Kelly Knedler or Holly Taylor to pass on your suggestions... We would love to hear from you!

WHEN FINALIZING YOUR PLANS, KNOW YOUR CONNECTIONS
So, if you decide to take a journey in New York City someday, and you wish to get from your hotel in upper Queens to Lincoln Center in the Midtown/Upper West side of Manhattan, you will need to know each connection point you must follow to get there. As a new music teacher on a new journey in a new school position, you also need to know each connection you must make. You will need to call the previous music teacher, talk to other music teachers in your district, talk with the principal, and get to know the custodian and the secretary. You also need to know the important dates on the school calendar or ask how you go about scheduling concerts and other events. Finally, and just as importantly, get connected to your KMEA District at the KMEA website: ksmea.org/districts. Remember throughout your entire journey in music education... DON'T BE AFRAID TO ASK QUESTIONS!