Growing up, I had an aspiration to be a teacher. My two older sisters were teachers and I loved school. In my mind, I would have the intellect of Bill Bye, the passion of Ms. Frizzle, and the fashion sense of Elle Woods. I grew up and accomplished my dream of becoming a teacher. For a long time, I was happy and felt satisfied with my decision. But dreams change, and that's okay. One thing I've learned growing up is that being a grown-up shouldn't stop you from dreaming. We ask kids what they want to be and why but never do we ask ourselves if we are what we can to be on an intermittent basis. The pandemic came and added insult to injury as I realized just how much I couldn't live life due to my career choice. 

I finally decided that enough was enough and that I needed a change.  Not knowing where to start, I started Googling good transitioning fields for teachers. I took an IT support course but decided I didn't want to code like that. The next suggested course was project management. I loved that and there I met my mentor. She aided me in the world of L&D where I discovered my love for instructional design and project management. The two truly go together. Through her, I met some awesome friends, joined a professional organization, and met my husband (but that's a story for another section). 

In October of 2023, with my father extremely sick, and a lack of growth in my career, I wanted out and stepped into the L&D field as a Senior Manager of Education and Engagement for the American Diabetes Association. Continue to follow as I update you on my journey navigating this space because I promise you it's far different than the safety of teaching. But just remember that growth is painful and trust me I endure growing pains.