From the Classroom to Cyber: My Journey from Teaching to Tech

If you had told me a few years ago that I’d be diving headfirst into cybersecurity, I would have laughed and assumed you meant I’d be resetting student passwords for eternity. My career started in theatre, led me to teaching, and then to school operations—now, I’m fully embracing a future in cybersecurity. The path hasn’t been linear, but every step has weirdly prepared me for this transition.

How I Ended Up in a Classroom

I majored in Theatre because I wanted to act and direct, and teaching seemed like a way to pay the bills while still having my evenings and weekends free (oh, the sweet, naive optimism). But once I got into the classroom, I realized something: I’m a natural educator. I loved helping students discover their voices, watching them grow in confidence, and seeing the bonds they formed through theatre. It wasn’t just about putting on a show—it was about giving them skills they’d carry for life.

Why I Left Education

As much as I loved my students, teaching came with some brutal realities. I was overworked, underpaid, and constantly fighting to prove that theatre education mattered. My breaking point? The day I realized I was spending more time with other people’s kids than my own. That one hit hard. I knew I needed a change—something that would allow me to provide for my family without running myself into the ground.

Falling (Accidentally) into Cybersecurity

I didn’t seek out cybersecurity—it kind of found me. I moved into an Operations role in my school district, where I handle everything from food service to facilities to (you guessed it) tech support. Turns out, my casual IT knowledge makes me the most qualified person in my district to troubleshoot tech problems.

The moment that flipped the switch? A co-worker got locked out of his MacBook, and I Googled my way into fixing it using the terminal. That rush of solving a problem? Chef’s kiss. From that point on, I was hooked. I dove into learning everything I could about IT, and soon, I had unofficially become the district’s go-to tech person.

Taking Cybersecurity Seriously (After a False Start)

The hardest part of this journey wasn’t learning the tech—it was convincing myself to go for it. I’d spent my whole life putting others first, and it felt selfish to invest in myself. But I knew if I didn’t take this leap, I’d stay stuck.

In 2023, I applied for the SANS Cyber Academy… and didn’t make it past the first round. That one stung. I almost gave up. But instead, I took it as a sign to double down. I kept learning, leaned into the cybersecurity community on LinkedIn and TikTok, and when I reapplied in 2024—boom, I got in. Imposter syndrome? Oh yeah, still here. But this time, I’ve got the receipts to prove I belong.

SANS has been a game-changer. It’s not just about the technical skills I’m learning—it’s about the confidence I’ve gained in the process.

Teachers Make Great Cybersecurity Professionals (Trust Me)

At first, I worried that I didn’t have enough technical skills, but then I realized: teachers are already built for cybersecurity. We’re expert communicators, problem-solvers, and masters of thinking on our feet. We know how to break down complex topics, adapt on the fly, and handle absolute chaos with a smile (seriously, classroom management is just incident response with smaller chairs).

Public speaking, conflict resolution, creative problem-solving, collaboration—these aren’t just classroom skills. They’re cybersecurity skills. I just had to learn how to apply them in a new way.

So… What’s Next?

Right now, I’m still exploring. I’m super into OSINT techniques and incident response, but mostly, I just want to be in the room where it happens. Cybersecurity is huge, and I’m excited to find my niche.

Advice for Other Educators Thinking About Cybersecurity

If you’re an educator (or anyone, really) thinking about jumping into cybersecurity, here’s my advice:

• Don’t underestimate your skills. You’ve been managing chaos, solving problems, and communicating complex ideas for years. That’s cybersecurity.
• Find your people. The cybersecurity community is full of helpful, supportive folks who genuinely want to see you succeed. Let them.
• Take the first step. You don’t have to know everything right away. Just start. Learn, fail, try again. That’s how we grow.

I never thought I’d leave education, and I definitely never thought I’d be this excited about cybersecurity. But here I am, proof that it’s never too late to pivot—and that sometimes, your next great adventure starts with a simple Google search.