Considerations for Work

1. Ponder whether dating will affect your working relationship and how.

2. Does your school’s policy discourage or prohibit employees from dating? Could this cost you your job? If one of you moves to another school, will it solve these issues?

3. Do either of you supervise the other? That could lead to serious legal issues.

4. Assess your school’s culture. Do your coworkers support each other when it comes to dating co-workers, or is there an atmosphere of gossip?

5. Does the person you’re dating have an “ex” who works with you at the school?

6. Do you plan to teach long-term or just temporarily? If it’s just for a season, you’ll want the relationship to have more in common than the fact you both teach.

The Affect on Your Personal Life

Be honest about whether dating makes sense for this season of your life.

1. Have you experienced a job change, major move, health issue, or break-up in the last year? Certain situations will create enough stress on their own. You’ll want to adjust to these before complicating your life.

2. Consider how your personal life and work life intersect. Do you see your colleague outside of school? How might this be awkward if the relationship dissolves?

3. Sometimes what makes a colleague fun to spend time with is that you only meet at the school. A relationship requires you to be comfortable with each other inside and outside of work.

4. Remember, you don’t want to date someone merely out of feelings, because feelings come and go.

Like any boyfriend or girlfriend, there is much to mull over before committing to a new connection. Every relationship will have obstacles. The question is whether you can overcome those obstacles and whether you can keep working together if the relationship goes sour. There is a lot to consider before jumping into a romance with a co-worker. For more on work relationships, check out “What To Do If the Principal Doesn’t Like You.”