Miss Fravel Moved to Music City

So it has been almost 6 months since I completed my internship and graduated from UNF. Amazing how it only seems like yesterday I was teaching the students about maps and helping with the Kids Art Fair Fundraiser!

After graduation I looked for jobs in Florida, Georgia, Maryland, and Tennessee. I saw more jobs for art teachers in Nashville then anywhere else, so I made the decision in May that I would move to Nashville, TN.

However, they have a strict policy to not see anyone for interviews unless they have a TN teachers license, I started the long paperwork process as soon as I graduated, first needing a FL license, then needing to apply for an out of state teachers license in TN. The good news is I just got my TN teachers license last weekend! The bad news is all the jobs have been filled at the moment.

I moved in August, now living with one of my best friends and her family. They have helped me adjust to the new environment and shown me what an exciting town Nashville can be! There is a lot of support from the community to keep art and music in the schools since it is Music City, and there is a growing art scene here. I am very excited about how much they seem to love art here, and the new superintendent is really doing a lot to improve the school systems here for students and teachers.

I start substitute teaching next week, which will be a great way to improve my classroom management, as well as learning more about the schools and students around the area. I have also been doing some volunteer work in the area as well through a great organization known as Hands on Nashville. Volunteers can participate in many different kinds of activities in and outside of the schools, so far my favorite volunteer work has been going bowling with the blind.

I certainly miss Jacksonville and can only hope my experiences in the schools here will be as wonderful as Chets Creek, but I feel I am off to a great start experiencing the town and getting involved in the community.

Here's a picture from the park downtown, Cenntenial Park, its a very large and beautiful park, there are always people there jogging, picnicing, painting, and enjoying the outdoors. There is a giant Parethenon replica which you can see in the picture in the middle of the park.



And here is a picture from the Opry Hotel, which is one of the largest (or maybe it is the largest) hotel in the country and its right next to the Grand Old Opry (one of the big tourist attractions here). Inside the Hotel are lavish gardens you can walk through.


I hope everyone is doing well and having a great school year so far!