The Placement Announcement

Sixty-four fidgety ETAs crammed into a classroom on Wednesday to find out their doom...I mean fortune. The F*lbright office came all the way from Seoul to announce the schools we will teach at for the next year. Mrs. Sh*m (F*lbright Korea Executive Director) and the staff worked hard to make the students, schools, and ETAs happy.

It was all very intense. First, we all file into a room that had been off-limits while we waited in the hallway. Then without much ado, Mrs. Sh*m gets up and states, "We tried very hard to make a good match. Don't compare yourselves to other ETAs. It will only make you unhappy. Let's begin." *wild applause* They announced the placements by region and then had everybody put a sticky up on the map where they were placed. The tension was thick. Mrs. Sh*m announced the school name in Korean, while the OCTs announced the school type and location in English. Everyone was so wound up that we all burst into applause at every placement. Most everyone is happy with their placements; those that aren't probably wouldn't be happy no matter the placement.

My placement was announced mid-way through the festivities. I got the school of my dreams! I wanted advanced kids and to be in a rural area, and I got both. If you notice, though, I'm quite on my own in terms of geographic location. Some ETAs are sharing cities (and an island), but my red sticky is out there in the open. People have asked me whether I'm OK with it. Of course I am! I'll just make a point to stay in touch with civilization.

The greatest part is the map with all of our stickies on it. I love looking to see where my friends are placed. I'm excited to go visit them all over the country.