I love keeping track of what happens to students after I have taught them. Particularly as a drama teacher, the HOURS I spend with these awesome people makes me love them ferociously and for life. They just do amazing things in life. I have only been teaching for ten years, so the oldest of "my kids" is not yet approaching 30, so life is full of change and possibilities.
I am so sad to learn of the loss of one of these extraordinary individuals. He was a truly sweet, kind, patient boy, who wanted so much to do well, and did it. He gave so much of himself.
I heard him sing once while playing guitar and was so impressed. I "forced" him to play a lead character in our little show, "Into the Woods". He was a marvelous kid to work with. So fun and so good to the other kids. And what a great smile. He was always making us smile.
I have no idea what has happened, all I know is that he has passed on, and he is so young and was so truly good. It is tragic. Below is a self-written bio (written in 2011) I found on his university blog, right before I saw that as an Honours Philosophy student, he just won a research grant at Acadia. My heart, thoughts, and prayers are with those closest to him, including family and friends.
My name is Matthew Kohlenberg. I was born in Calgary Alberta in 1991 and lived there most of my life up until heading out to Nova Scotia to attend university. My main interests lay in the fields of English Literature and Philosophy which I’m currently double majoring in. My eventual goal is to take my Doctorate in one of these subjects and profess at a university. In my life I’ve been fortunate enough to travel a great deal, certainly for someone my age. I love travel and intend to continue doing so as much as I can throughout my life. Other interests are reading, guitar, ect. The usual stuff.
Sunday, July 28, 2013
Sunday, July 7, 2013
Freedom Post: Part 2
So here is the story, and I hope that this is the last time I am going to tell it, because I really want to put this behind me. But I have to put it down on paper. I would like it to serve as a warning for some. For others, it will hopefully just remind you to be grateful for living in a country where "fair", "equal", and "human rights" are phrases that mean something.
Brody began to go to school when he came to live with us in Qatar. We knew that in order for him to be able to attend, he would have to get the residency permit I referred to in Part 1. We immediately go in touch with Human Resources at my school and at CNAQ to figure out what to do to make that happen. Brody (and Paul) were living in Qatar on tourist visas, which had to be renewed every 30 days until the RP's were processed. This was a very involved process. Paul took a low paying job that promised to sponsor him so that he and Brody could get RP's. Brody's mom spent money on lawyers to get forms we needed. My sister went out of her way at 9 months pregnant to help us send birth certificate, marriage certificate, and guardianship papers to Ottawa for authentication and then to Qatar. With Qatar's terrible postal services, this was no easy task. We pinned our lives and our hopes on this advice that we were given, so that we could all stay together as a family, and live in Qatar.
At the beginning of June we notified the head honchos (directors of the school) that the paperwork we had been waiting for and sending them endless emails about would finally be forthcoming soon. At that point, they called the principal of the school and told her that Brody would not be allowed to receive my medical benefits or other benefits, including tuition to attend Qatar Canadian School. I was shocked and mystified. After all, we had been working for months to get Paul and Brody RP's done so that they could get medical insurance and so that next year we could all stay in Qatar. I asked for a meeting with these people to understand why there was suddenly a problem. The principal and vice principal were called to attend the meeting with me. I took a copy of my contract with me. In it, my contract explicitly states that dependent children, and it stated children OR stepchildren would receive my benefits.
At this meeting, the Financial Head Honcho brought his own, FORGED version of my contract, that did not list stepchildren as qualifying. Despite the fact that I had the original job offer email, the Director of the School and the Financial Guy refused to honour my contract, accused me of writing it, and said they had never seen it before. Everyone who was hired the same year as I was, had the same contract by the way, with this same phrase. They lied to me and said that stepchildren are not recognized in Qatar. This is an out-and-out lie. They told me "too bad" and I could take them to court.
I pointed out that my qualifications make me a valuable employee. They agreed. I suggested that they should find a way to make this work...maybe a raise to cover the tuition cost, for example. They said they would think about it, then three days later, said "no". This was on about June 6th. By June 8th I had found a new job in Beijing. The school there was willing to write directly into my contract that Brody will receive free tuition and fees. I gave notice that I would not be back.
On JUNE 16th, with less than two weeks to the end of the school year, I received a 16 000 Qatari Riyal bill for Brody's current tuition. This amounts to about 4400 Canadian. I flipped out at our HR lady at the school and said there was no way I could pay this. Why, I asked would I be charged tuition for a child that you say is not my son? After all, if he was, he should get tuition. If not, why would I be the one to pay his tuition?
The principal was called in next and put through a trying ordeal where she was told that she was too blame for this mistake. She went away expecting to pay the 4400 the next day herself. After driving her to the bank that night, I woke up the next morning determined that this was completely ridiculous. After all, the principal relied on the HR department of our parent company (CNAQ) to do its job.
On June 19th I sent an email to the Head Honchos that stated simply that it was immoral and unethical of them to charge the school principal for Brody's tuition. I erased the sentence that said what I really wanted to...that they should stop trying to EXTORT this money from me...or her...or anyone... Within two hours, Brody and I were commanded to leave school property immediately and not return. Then came horrible days. In Qatar, your employer is your sponsor. They decide if you get to leave the country or not. Ever. I had no idea what they would do to me if I did not pay this bill. As this was the first time that anyone had ever mentioned such a possibility, we did not have even close to that amount of money.
Eventually what they did was withhold my final pay to recover the 16000, which left me with a paycheque of 400 dollars Canadian for June and July. As I had only two days to catch my flight out of Qatar at this point, I had no choice but to accept this, and be grateful to be leaving the country. There were so many more lies told that I can't even stand to list them all. Brody was never allowed to return to the school, even after the money was paid.
Now I am living off the charity of my mother and friends while I wait for my new job in Beijing to start. Obviously my four hundred dollars is long gone. I had to renew my passport this week, which now costs 120 bucks.
Basically, the people who make financial decisions at QCS do not ever step into the building, and the ONE that does is just a spy and snitch. They freely admit that they do not care what happens there, and the only time they do shell out cash is when they are forced to in order to keep their "Alberta Accredited" designation. They short-change the students at the school constantly, who are good kids. They screw over the staff again and again, despite the fact that they are talented teachers who deserve better. And because the "sponsors" are nationals, and we are just expats, there is LESS THAN NOTHING that we can do about it, but accept being cheated and lied to. It is not uncommon at QCS for teachers to not receive promised pay at the end of the year, for example.
This story is even more complex than what I have described, but frankly, I could write a book about the corruption that exists in this place. We were even advised by good Qatari families, that what was happening to us was very wrong and shameful. I do not believe that all of Qatar is like this. A lot of people have great experiences with employers. But CNAQ and QCS are places to AVOID AT ALL COSTS as far as I am concerned. The head administrators are completely untrustworthy. They aren't running schools. They are running, what they hope to be, money MAKING ventures.
Ok, I am exhausted. I have many positive things to say in upcoming posts. We are all back safely in Canada and are eagerly awaiting our next adventure in Beijing.
In spite of the disaster that happened to us in Qatar, we all still would not change a thing. We met wonderful people, made close friends, and saw beautiful and fascinating parts of the world.
Travel you Fellow Teachers. Just do your homework when choosing an employer, and then check it again. And again.
I am grateful to be Canadian and to live in a land with...um...contract laws...and freedom, and people who believe that all people deserve to be treated with equity.
Brody began to go to school when he came to live with us in Qatar. We knew that in order for him to be able to attend, he would have to get the residency permit I referred to in Part 1. We immediately go in touch with Human Resources at my school and at CNAQ to figure out what to do to make that happen. Brody (and Paul) were living in Qatar on tourist visas, which had to be renewed every 30 days until the RP's were processed. This was a very involved process. Paul took a low paying job that promised to sponsor him so that he and Brody could get RP's. Brody's mom spent money on lawyers to get forms we needed. My sister went out of her way at 9 months pregnant to help us send birth certificate, marriage certificate, and guardianship papers to Ottawa for authentication and then to Qatar. With Qatar's terrible postal services, this was no easy task. We pinned our lives and our hopes on this advice that we were given, so that we could all stay together as a family, and live in Qatar.
At the beginning of June we notified the head honchos (directors of the school) that the paperwork we had been waiting for and sending them endless emails about would finally be forthcoming soon. At that point, they called the principal of the school and told her that Brody would not be allowed to receive my medical benefits or other benefits, including tuition to attend Qatar Canadian School. I was shocked and mystified. After all, we had been working for months to get Paul and Brody RP's done so that they could get medical insurance and so that next year we could all stay in Qatar. I asked for a meeting with these people to understand why there was suddenly a problem. The principal and vice principal were called to attend the meeting with me. I took a copy of my contract with me. In it, my contract explicitly states that dependent children, and it stated children OR stepchildren would receive my benefits.
At this meeting, the Financial Head Honcho brought his own, FORGED version of my contract, that did not list stepchildren as qualifying. Despite the fact that I had the original job offer email, the Director of the School and the Financial Guy refused to honour my contract, accused me of writing it, and said they had never seen it before. Everyone who was hired the same year as I was, had the same contract by the way, with this same phrase. They lied to me and said that stepchildren are not recognized in Qatar. This is an out-and-out lie. They told me "too bad" and I could take them to court.
I pointed out that my qualifications make me a valuable employee. They agreed. I suggested that they should find a way to make this work...maybe a raise to cover the tuition cost, for example. They said they would think about it, then three days later, said "no". This was on about June 6th. By June 8th I had found a new job in Beijing. The school there was willing to write directly into my contract that Brody will receive free tuition and fees. I gave notice that I would not be back.
On JUNE 16th, with less than two weeks to the end of the school year, I received a 16 000 Qatari Riyal bill for Brody's current tuition. This amounts to about 4400 Canadian. I flipped out at our HR lady at the school and said there was no way I could pay this. Why, I asked would I be charged tuition for a child that you say is not my son? After all, if he was, he should get tuition. If not, why would I be the one to pay his tuition?
The principal was called in next and put through a trying ordeal where she was told that she was too blame for this mistake. She went away expecting to pay the 4400 the next day herself. After driving her to the bank that night, I woke up the next morning determined that this was completely ridiculous. After all, the principal relied on the HR department of our parent company (CNAQ) to do its job.
On June 19th I sent an email to the Head Honchos that stated simply that it was immoral and unethical of them to charge the school principal for Brody's tuition. I erased the sentence that said what I really wanted to...that they should stop trying to EXTORT this money from me...or her...or anyone... Within two hours, Brody and I were commanded to leave school property immediately and not return. Then came horrible days. In Qatar, your employer is your sponsor. They decide if you get to leave the country or not. Ever. I had no idea what they would do to me if I did not pay this bill. As this was the first time that anyone had ever mentioned such a possibility, we did not have even close to that amount of money.
Eventually what they did was withhold my final pay to recover the 16000, which left me with a paycheque of 400 dollars Canadian for June and July. As I had only two days to catch my flight out of Qatar at this point, I had no choice but to accept this, and be grateful to be leaving the country. There were so many more lies told that I can't even stand to list them all. Brody was never allowed to return to the school, even after the money was paid.
Now I am living off the charity of my mother and friends while I wait for my new job in Beijing to start. Obviously my four hundred dollars is long gone. I had to renew my passport this week, which now costs 120 bucks.
Basically, the people who make financial decisions at QCS do not ever step into the building, and the ONE that does is just a spy and snitch. They freely admit that they do not care what happens there, and the only time they do shell out cash is when they are forced to in order to keep their "Alberta Accredited" designation. They short-change the students at the school constantly, who are good kids. They screw over the staff again and again, despite the fact that they are talented teachers who deserve better. And because the "sponsors" are nationals, and we are just expats, there is LESS THAN NOTHING that we can do about it, but accept being cheated and lied to. It is not uncommon at QCS for teachers to not receive promised pay at the end of the year, for example.
This story is even more complex than what I have described, but frankly, I could write a book about the corruption that exists in this place. We were even advised by good Qatari families, that what was happening to us was very wrong and shameful. I do not believe that all of Qatar is like this. A lot of people have great experiences with employers. But CNAQ and QCS are places to AVOID AT ALL COSTS as far as I am concerned. The head administrators are completely untrustworthy. They aren't running schools. They are running, what they hope to be, money MAKING ventures.
Ok, I am exhausted. I have many positive things to say in upcoming posts. We are all back safely in Canada and are eagerly awaiting our next adventure in Beijing.
In spite of the disaster that happened to us in Qatar, we all still would not change a thing. We met wonderful people, made close friends, and saw beautiful and fascinating parts of the world.
Travel you Fellow Teachers. Just do your homework when choosing an employer, and then check it again. And again.
I am grateful to be Canadian and to live in a land with...um...contract laws...and freedom, and people who believe that all people deserve to be treated with equity.
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