Be open to change

I remember pretty much always wanting to be a teacher. I briefly rebelled in middle school when I thought I wanted to be an architect. But in high school, we took some aptitude tests, and my results indicated that I might want to pursue a career in education. It was true, I decided. I did want to be a teacher! I jumped in with enthusiasm, teaching Sunday school and looking for a college with a good education program.

That was what brought me to St. Ben’s. From my very first semester, I had an education class every day, often more than one! I graduated with an elementary education degree and got a job teaching seventh grade language arts (quite a surprise to high school me, who always thought she wanted to teach fifth grade).

In the years since graduation, I have taught three different grades and am now a library media specialist at a high school. I engage students with books and technology, collaborate with teachers to bring media literacy to the classroom, help curate library materials and strive to include every student in our school community. Every day is different. I didn’t always plan on becoming a media specialist, but I love it.

I always thought I knew what I wanted to do, but I didn’t know what else I could do. Even my turn as a high school media specialist is a stretch from what I thought I would be when I chose my major at CSB. Careers have changed quite a bit since I decided to be a teacher, and while I still value education, I have come to realize there are other career paths I could have taken. I could have been a book editor or found a job where I could write every day. And did you know that pastry chef is a career? I didn’t!

I was recently talking with a student who was struggling to make a college decision. She wasn’t sure what she wanted to do for a career and didn’t know what school would be the best fit. I encouraged her to take classes that she was interested in and see what career paths existed in those fields, to explore more than what she thinks she might want to be now. There are so many options out there. Be open to changing course.

Looking back, I wish this was what someone had told me. I could have spent more time following my interests to see what else was out there for me, maybe jumped into a career that was something I hadn’t even considered before. Having career aspirations is great, and maybe I still would have decided that education was the path for me…but maybe I would have been really great at architecture, too.