Scott Peavey and Joe Zlatnik are both administrators in the Kansas City area.  Scott is currently the Assistant Principal and Activities Director at Basehor-Linwood Middle School.  Joe is the Assistant Principal at Eudora High School.

As the calendar approaches spring (which is hard to believe as I sit here looking out my window at an ice storm) school districts throughout the state of Kansas are preparing for another round of hiring.  Many schools have already had multiple vacancies while the majority are now receiving letters of resignation, retirement notices, and board approval for brand new positions. Many area universities are holding their career fairs soon and hundreds of aspiring new teachers are preparing their materials to do what they can to stand out from the crowd.

Although cover letters are undoubtedly important, the reality is that most applications get vetoed before anyone even gets to reading the letter.  We are both administrators in the Kansas City metro area, and it is not uncommon for schools in this region to receive well over 100 applicants for most teaching vacancies; this is especially true for most social studies openings.  When school districts are looking through these applications a “sorting” process often takes place. Based off of an initial look of the submitted resumes a small number are chosen for closer examination; from there an even smaller number are selected for interviews.

The following are a few simple recommendations to help your resume truly reflect the aspects of your candidacy that you are hoping to convey; and hopefully get you to the next round of the process!

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