After working in different industries, several teachers made the decision to change their career to teaching.

Science teacher Jill Lloyd previously worked as a research assistant in the microbiology department at the University of Kansas Medical Center. Two years after her career began, Lloyd realized teaching was her passion.

“The reason why I became a teacher was because I just felt like that was my dream job,” Lloyd said.

When choosing her career, Lloyd hadn’t considered teaching.

“All of my other family members were teachers, so I started off not wanting to be a teacher,” Lloyd said. “Two years into the research field, I decided that teaching was it.”

Social studies teacher Chris Dunback changed his career path while in training to be a nurse anesthetist.

“Working in the ICU (Intensive Care Unit) as a registered nurse means that you’re taking care of the sickest of the sick people,” Dunback said. “So you have to be pretty good under pressure and stress.”

After a few years of work, Dunback found himself unable to separate work and home life emotionally.

“To be successful in the medical field, you gotta be able to clock out and go home and have a normal life. I was unable to do that. I was taking my work home with me emotionally,” Dunback said.

After three years of working in the ICU, Dunback decided he needed a more stable and predictable career.

“I decided that I needed to get into a profession where I could become attached to people and help them and I turned to teaching,” Dunback said.

Similarly, math teacher Brian Rodkey also felt his calling was teaching. Before becoming a teacher, Rodkey was an engineer with Honeywell Aerospace. He designed work for six years and was a program manager for four years.

“I wanted to be a teacher because I have always wanted to learn and I really like learning and then sharing what I’ve learned,” Rodkey said.

Rodkey’s favorite part about teaching is when students have a passion for learning.

“The pros are when students love to learn,” Rodkey said. “When students like to learn, and when students enjoy what they’re doing.”

Lloyd, Dunback and Rodkey have all found that their calling is to teach, despite their previous career paths.

“I just kinda felt like that was my calling,” Rodkey said. “I felt like that was kinda God’s plan for my life was to teach.”