Getting Accepted to the Program
On May 9th, while I was in class teaching, I saw that I received an email from Disney. I had told myself that if I got the email while I was at work I wouldn’t open it for fear of being disappointed but in that moment I wasn’t thinking and opened it immediately. Before even opening it fully I could see the beginning of the subject line saying “CONGRATULATIONS!”. I got the job!!! I was in the middle of a three-hour teaching period when I received this email and at the time my students were working independently and silently on a project. I can’t even begin to describe to you the emotions that I was experiencing in this moment but having to internalize them all silently as I was working. As soon as I left work I called my boyfriend to tell him the happy news and it wasn’t until later that evening that I called my parents and best friends to let them know.
The email I received included a link to a letter that explained the position I was being offered and explained that I had to give them an answer within 14 days. I responded to my offer about a week after I got the letter because it was a huge decision for me to make. I am fresh out of teacher’s college (B.Sc./B.Ed. 2015) and was so fortunate to already have teaching positions at two private schools. I was just beginning my career as a teacher and now I was thinking about leaving that to pursue a second dream. But after a lot of personal reflection and encouragement from my amazing family and friends, I realized that if I wanted to inspire my students to follow their dreams, I had to lead by example and follow mine. All I really want in life is to inspire others and make people happy, so I thought, what better place to do that than at Walt Disney World?
In the letter I received it said that I was offered a food and beverage position and it was a quick service position. This threw me off at first because I know that the food and beverage area in the Canada pavilion was a signature dining restaurant called Le Cellier. But I realized that they must put this as your starting position because when you start at the pavilion you begin as a restaurant host/hostess (seater) and also do some shifts at a popcorn stand outside. The interviewers had explained that everyone starts out doing this and then after about three months, if you are ready (you have to pass a series of tests), you will be promoted to a server.
After officially accepting my offer, I began telling more family and friends. Watching or hearing people’s reactions when I tell them I am going work at Disney World for one year never gets old. I made sure to tell all of the most important people first either in person or on the phone before announcing it on Facebook. It made me so happy to have support from my family and friends and it was even more affirming that I was doing the right thing when even my employers were supporting me in my decision. Telling my students was hard because I had built some really good relationships with my students and although they were sad that I was leaving, they too were supportive and were so excited to hear all about “Miss Stephanie’s” year in Disney during the next school year.
After accepting my offer, I once again had to be patient while I waited to hear from Disney regarding my next steps. This will be further explained in following posts!
