Kait Evans went from elementary school teacher to Youth Programs Manager at a nonprofit that serves refugees and migrant families in Kentucky. Listen in as we talk about how teaching skills can translate to a nonprofit role and how Kait’s work life balance has changed.
Listen to the episode in the podcast player below, or find it on Apple Podcast or Spotify.
Mentioned in the episode:
- Use code “TCC” to get 50% off of everything at Aspireship
- Our career path quiz at www.teachercareercoach.com/quiz
- Explore the course that has helped thousands of teachers successfully transition out of the classroom and into new careers: The Teacher Career Coach Course (If you are a Teacher Career Coach Course member, you can also sign up for our one-on-one Career Clarity calls.)
Elizabeth:
Welcome, Kait.
Kait: thanks for having me, Elizabeth.
Elizabeth: Well, super excited to have you and spend some time today with you because you were a teacher, and now you’re at a non profit working and supporting with refugees. So we’d love to hear a little bit about your background. How did it all start? How did you get into education? And then when did you know it was time to move on?
Kait: Yes, so I guess I’m going back to like my childhood. I always loved school. I loved learning and Just very early on, I had my mind set that I wanted to be a teacher. Um, and so I just kind of went, that route throughout, college. I went to school and I was able to get into the, uh, education program. And they had a special cohort, called it the Title I, uh, cohort. And it basically allowed us to have additional, um, classroom time, um, classes all around, um, being in under resourced communities, and then post graduation, I continually taught in, again, those under resourced communities. we did frequently move around a lot because of my husband’s job.
So I did teach in a lot of states. I got to experience the education policies in those states in different districts and schools.
Um, in terms of when I felt like it was time to leave, I think it was just a gradual process until you kind of hit that, that realization point.
Thank you. Um, I never felt when I was teaching, like I was caught up just work was always piling up, so many demands that were just passed down from the state level, district level, school level.
And in general, my priority has always been relationship based, um, both with our kids and the families. And even though, that was supported, by leadership, you know, like, oh, yes, they were all about relationships. The expectations, the actions, the policy always proved otherwise. So it’s like, they were talking about how that was important with relationships, but then the expectations and the work and everything else was not, um, relationships were not the forefront of that.
but in general, I, my mental health ended up taking a really big hit. I think around the COVID time, um, I think it was both in conjunction with COVID, but also just teaching, um, it was just not good mentally.
I thought that the issue was the fact that I was just in public education. So I even tried teaching in private schools that had like the lower class size that allowed a lot of teacher freedom. And I still just felt like really unhappy and really dissatisfied. and then I had a baby and, that kind of really put a lot of things in perspective. Uh, I reflected on like what I really wanted how it impacted my wellbeing, my life. both like at work and outside of work, and so I decided to try to pursue a career not in teaching. That’s kind of a little background.
Elizabeth: Thank you so much for sharing that. I really appreciate you being vulnerable and sharing that with the teacher community and audience. It’s. They’re really helpful and important to know that, you know, others went through this too. Others are going through this as well. And congratulations on your new baby.
Kait: Yes, thank you. It is exhausting. Um, yes,
Elizabeth: Well, I’m so excited to hear a little bit more about where you are now, but, but to kind of reflect on what you said, I noticed you were in a public school, then you tried something different. So it sounds like you did kind of try these different avenues. You, you tried different States.
different systems, and then you also did reading specialist work, right?
Kait: yes. I mean, I, so in addition to changing, uh, districts and states and schools, I did, um, bop around to different grade levels. I did like reading intervention. I was back in the classroom, just teaching different grade levels.
and I will say, I feel like when I was really happy with teaching, it was when I was doing some reading intervention, but I think it was because of, again, like the smaller class sizes, but the workload seemed a lot more manageable. And again, I was able to really focus on those relationship pieces. In the career, and then, uh, that just was not again sustainable, just district policy and pay and and all of that. So.
Elizabeth: Okay. That’s very helpful. The Teacher Career Coach Course, they recommend, you know, if you’re in education, try something different, you know, a new grade level, a coaching position, a specialist.
You really were very thoughtful about this next transition and how you wanted to support your mental health and going forward.
Elizabeth: So you landed a role at a nonprofit, supporting refugees. Can you tell us before you tell us all about this role? It sounds very exciting. How did you narrow it down and figure out career wise where to even look?
Kait: Yeah, I think that was also really overwhelming is when I made the decision to look outside of teaching. I was like, well, what is there? Because again, going back I’d always been focused on teaching. That was it. And so the thought of like there being other things was like, well, what is it? and so I kind of thought back to my experience with teaching and again, like when I was happiest, what I was doing. I remember, uh, being at one of the schools and being part of the home visit liaison, um, working with refugee and immigrant students and youth. And I just loved that, um, working with that population and demographic, and so at 1st, I was like, okay, well, maybe it’s because I liked doing a lot of the planning and the events.
So I briefly thought, like, getting into, like, event planning with, you know, the skills and things like that. And so I kind of dipped my toe a little bit. I wasn’t like all in on applying. Um, nothing really came of it, but also as I was like applying, I realized It was more so a way to just get out of my current teaching position and less about like I actually wanted to do that job. so then as I reflected more, I thought about like, okay, non profit. And so again, I was just searching all the different non profit jobs, seeing what was out there, and trying to get more of a gauge on what those tasks entailed.
Elizabeth: That makes sense. It sounds like You had an exit strategy at first. It was like: just exit.
And then as you researched more and learned more, you kind of could hone into what specifically you loved about teaching those relationships and working with kids and the home visits and kind of connect that to what you are doing now.
Kait: Even, um, at one point I was also looking at like state level, um, jobs, like the education department for the different states. and I did have, like, a couple interviews with that, but I realized in the interview, like, I just did not want that job. Again, being relationship oriented, the jobs that I was applying for and interviewing for just seemed to vary, um, based around just, like, data and computers and desks. I need that personal element for me to be happy,
Elizabeth: I think it’s great too that you actually experienced the interview process for those jobs because that’s how you kind of found out like, Oh, I don’t think I’d like doing this job every single day. It doesn’t suit me.
Kait: when I was applying for just various jobs, just trying to figure out what it was that I was passionate for, I will say it can be very disheartening when you apply for so many jobs and you spend so much time. Working on your resume and trying to tailor it to whatever specifications the job is listing and I just nothing comes of it. so I just want everyone to know out there. Like, Finding a job outside of teaching is not as easy as finding a job in teaching just because there is more competition to be honest. So making note of that.
Elizabeth: I’m glad you brought that up. You know, a lot of our listeners are, are searching now and are kind of feeling that frustration about it’s just different out there in the market, the corporate world with hiring and there’s competitions from different layoffs that have occurred.
So, how did you, continue on when you were getting rejected, finding positions you didn’t want? Like, how did you keep that motivation strong to continue in your search?
Kait: Yeah, I think so. When I was still looking, I was at a school where, again, I had a very small class. It was like 8 to 10 kids. a lot of teaching freedom. And so mentally, I was just like, I know I will eventually find another position. but I’m at least I’m currently at a place where it’s not like really knocking my mental health, like some other positions.
So, I guess the advice there is while you’re looking to make sure you’re in a position where it’s not detrimental to your mental health. and to just like keep trying. I know sometimes it just really sucks.
Elizabeth: That’s such a good point. you were able to search based on the environment you were working on, and then you just had that positive mindset that you will get another job.
Kait: Yes. I mean, it’s not like you think that every time like sometimes when you’re like, you see a job and you’re like, like, I would love to get an interview and then you don’t and it’s just like, oh my gosh, but, honestly, but also keep checking sites like daily. because jobs are always popping up. Um, and you can kind of just see what’s out there.
Elizabeth: I know you stumbled on the Teacher Career Coach Podcast. When, when in your process did you find that? Was it supportive in any way?
Kait: Yes. I mean, just so being a teacher, you always follow all like the teacher accounts on social media. I don’t know even how it came up, but I know it like popped up somehow. And so I like clicked the profile on Instagram and was just like scrolling and reading. and it just was very intriguing again with the time of life I was in with potentially, this is before I was dead set on leaving teaching, but it for sure, like, piqued my interest. and I think what really helped was the focus on resume building, and the different, advice and supports, The Teacher Career Coach P odcast kind of gave with that. Um, in this current role, being a manager in that hiring position, I can definitely see how building your resume is really, really key to get your foot into that door of interviewing.
Elizabeth: And, can you tell us a bit about the application process and the interview process for your,the role that you’re in now? What was that like?
Kait: So, the application process was actually really easy compared to some of them. I think it was just like uploading like my resume, um, I think maybe answering a couple questions directly on the website, um, and then going from, from there. And I will say through all my applications and resume submissions, there’s different ways you can do it, like sometimes it’s through like Indeed or other types of, um, websites like that, but I always found that I would get a quicker feedback and like response when I applied directly to the actual company’s website, of using a third party. So I don’t know if that’s just like a personal thing or if that’s, across the board with what other people have experienced. But I also just mentally felt like when I said it submitted it directly to the company’s website, it was going, I felt like it was going to be seen rather than just like getting shuffled out from AI or different software.
Elizabeth: And then once they saw your resume, did they call you in for an interview? Was there a project or a screening that you had to go through?
Kait: I just got an email, saying like the date and time of when my interview was scheduled for. which I thought was a little odd because that’s never usually it was kind of like an email back and forth. Like, what works for you? now, being in this role, I understand just how busy, you are. And so you kind of just give HR the, the dates and times you can interview and then they set it up from there. There, of course, I get that doesn’t work for you. We would be able to email HR and they would find another time. but luckily that time and day worked for me. And so I just was able to show up and interview.
Elizabeth: and how were you able to translate your skills from teaching to this new role during the interview?
Kait: I will say that with my resume, it was kind of different. Like I had to, again, really tailor it to that corporate speak.I think that’s the really key for teachers to know is we have so many skills and so much knowledge and training. We just need to learn how to translate it, into that corporate.
So, and this is all getting mentioned on like the podcast, but, you know, so talking about like students talking about clients. Little changes here and there, so doing that on my resume, I was just very corporate. it hurt my heart to get rid of all the colors.
But then in the interview, I didn’t, didn’t use corporate speak cause it’s not as natural to me. I just talked about like youth and my experiences. that’s the biggest thing I will say is just every question they would ask is taking it, answering it, but then providing that example that you had from, like, an actual situation or experience that you had encountered.
Elizabeth: Absolutely. Sharing the story and then the impact. That the story had on what your goal was and what you were trying to achieve.
And are you currently remote, in office, or hybrid?
Kait: so I’m currently in office, um, however, my job allows me to just really get out and about, with, like, the community and with the kids, doing different things.
I’m currently in office and our organization is in office, but we work closely with other agencies that are hybrid, that are remote. so just because like I’m not, remote or hybrid does not mean other, uh, nonprofits aren’t. There’s still lots of flexibility. If that’s something that, you’re looking for.
Elizabeth: Very good point. I’m super curious to just hear about your role and what you do day to day and kind of these different students that you work with. Refugees. Tell us a little bit about that.
Kait: Yes. I mean, I literally could talk about this job all day. Like I have never been more excited or happy with where I am, especially with my career, which is wild to see, like looking back where I’ve come from.
and I know, so my personality is like, I’m not going to be happy doing the same thing, where it’s not challenging or I can’t really get creative and this job really allows me to be flexible and creative and like, kind of find different solutions. every day is different, which is really nice. I manage a team of 8 people. and so we are, uh, the youth program. we provide a variety of different services and resources to youth and their families. at our organization, they’re all called clients, but I still, you know, say youth and kids and family.
We have a lot of different programs. We’re just coming off of the summer program. We also do school registration. We work closely with the school district. we have an ECE program, we do mentoring, college and career support, case management, provide referrals, do donations and backpacks. so that’s just kind of a brief overview of all the different. Things that we’re able to provide our, our families.
Elizabeth: That’s amazing. It sounds like you’re doing all the things you loved working with kids without these wild expectations from, third parties and state and government.
Kait: Yes. I mean, we still because we are nonprofit and our funding comes through grants federally. We do have some private ones. So there is still a lot of like stipulations. but in the classroom, when you do get to know those kids, and you do see that they need different types of support, that is not necessarily education. it’s really hard to do that and do your normal classroom stuff like you really are like the social worker that the friend you’re you’re filling all these roles and wearing all these hats. But with this position, I’m in, I’m really able to do all the other things that I didn’t teaching, but really do them well.
there’s still like a lot of parameters and things like that. But, in general, it’s just a lot more fun.
Elizabeth: And in terms of resources available, do you have clients or students who speak different languages and then the ability to have translators to support with that? Or how does that look?
Kait: Yeah, so a lot of our families come in speaking different languages. We have very large Congolese population that speak Swahili and Kinyarwanda and variations of that. Lots of Spanish speakers, Haitian Creole. I mean, I can just go on. We do a lot of families who speak a lot of different languages.
we do have a language service department in our building, and we work closely with them in terms of, you know, being able to use an interpreter on our phones. We can even book one out to go in person. They do translations. uh, what’s really interesting, too, is, the local school district here, they also have, like, an interpreter, app that they can use, as well, to work with, with the kids and their families.
Elizabeth: So it’s just nice to hear that there are like career paths and positions out there where you’re still directly working with the youth, you’re working with families and children, and there’s that ability to be outside of a traditional classroom, just in a different environment. I’m excited to hear this and excited for everyone to listen.
Kait: it’s really wild that I found a job that allows me to use all the skills I, I learned and developed while teaching, and also incorporate the passion that I have. like I love, like using Canva and creating things like that. And I’m able to do that during the workday, and like be able to do that for our orientations and advertisements.
being able to build relationships and connections not just with families, but also other community partners and the stakeholders, as the corporate lingo is. And I never thought that I could find a job that really did translate my skills and passion that was outside of teaching.
Elizabeth: but for those who are in the classroom, and they might connect with this episode and say, Oh, I’m interested in this, would a good next step be to go to their district to see if they have a home visit program or a a community engagement program?
Yeah. I mean, I think every district has, has those things available. I’ve found in general though, it’s like the resources and the information are like higher up at that, like leadership level. And it very rarely can like trickle down to like the classroom teachers. and giving them like access to to that information and to those resources. so again, just the key is finding someone who kind of knows something and then kind of making your connection from there and, hopping along different people as they give you more inside information to what they know and their connections.
Kait: It’s just really frustrating that in teaching those resources are not readily available. You really have to dig and hunt for them. you know, you have to do that outside of your contract hours. That’s, that’s the big thing.
Elizabeth: so find a champion at your school district, see what information you can find, and then you can kind of dip your toes in to see if this might be an environment, you know, a non profit that works with these families.
Kait: And like, I mean, even here, like the nonprofit community, I didn’t realize how large and how interconnected it is. Just, if you can just find a local, one local nonprofit and kind of even reach out to them and see what resources they have, they will likely jump and be able to kind of give you more information as well. So if you can’t find it in your school district. Just try to find a local non profit, and we are all very eager to always provide support and resources because that’s our job.
Elizabeth: In, in terms of your new position, are there growth options down the road, um, if you continue to stay here?
Kait: Yes, absolutely. So within our Agency, there is lots of room to to kind of move on so my position that I was able to to get opened up because the previous person in here was promoted to the assistant director and then the assistant director was promoted to the director because the director was promoted so you can see again how just there’s that chainof events s that happen, so there’s, I think, always options to move.
And again, with there being grants, you can easily write a grant or try to kind of join one and be able to open positions that way. Or realign your to fit with whatever grant you’re trying to promote
Elizabeth: And with the grant, is this something, do you write them? Is there a way to learn that quickly? I know some teachers are interested in grant writing as well.
Kait: so I honestly have very limited knowledge on grant writing. I’m currently trying to reach out and even like, the members of my staff are also interested. We’re trying to find a connection of who can teach us about it. So, I have not written any grants yet. I mean, it’s very much a thing, like, here in our agency to, to write grants or to find, local private donors who want to start a grant or, you know, give, give you funding for different things.
I was kind of nervous and hopping back to the interview process. Because 1 of the questions they did ask is if I had, like, grant writing experience or had much. And like, I mean, I was honest. It was like, no, but I’m definitely willing to learn. So for teachers out there, know that even if you don’t have all of the qualifications, it doesn’t always hinder your ability to get that job.
Elizabeth: I’m glad you said that. earlier you mentioned, kind of once you had your child your thought process changed, kind of your mindset shifted. Now that you’re in this new position, what’s your work life balance like? talk a little bit about how that has changed for you.
Kait: this is one that I’ve really spoken to a lot of my teacher friends about. so I mean, I’m always busy. There’s always tasks to do. I don’t ever really feel overwhelmed or frazzled or frustrated like I did in teaching. I can like turn off my brain when it comes to work on the weekends. Like I’m not experiencing those like Sunday scaries or like that dark cloud about summer break ending and having to go back. So I kind of equate it to prepping for like back to school.
So you’re going back to school, you’re setting up your classroom, you’re doing all the prep work. And so those tasks are never ending. They’re always constant. But you don’t really have that stress and that like tension in your body, like you do once the school year starts and like once you have to do all the classroom things and then do more things after you’re teaching. So that’s kind of how I would explain the work life balance in that regard.
Elizabeth: That’s very helpful. you know, before you couldn’t really shut your brain off and now on the weekends it’s just a little bit more manageable to kind of close that off and spend it with your family
Kait: I mean, I’m still working on like the work life balance, but that’s more so because I love my job and like, The tasks, I want to do them. learn more about how to make things better. And it’s not like I have to get this done because, um, I need to get it ready for tomorrow or for next week.
Like if there’s a deadline and it’s. it’s much more relaxed feeling.
Elizabeth: And, uh,we love e to kind of wrap these up by asking you what have you learned about yourself during this process?
Kait: Yeah, I think I’ve learned so much in such a short period of time. the biggest thing I feel like is that sense of confidence. and just really that self assurance that I am very qualified.
sometimes when I was, you know, applying for jobs I just felt like I was like, well, I don’t even like I’m just a teacher. I don’t really have any skills. But now looking at it from this perspective, I can easily see all the different things we have to know and are able to do, in a job outside of teaching. I also learned that this is more like a therapy, I guess, but you don’t have to stay in a job or a situation or a relationship that really negative negatively impacts you. You don’t have to kind of carry that guilt of staying when you don’t want to. I’ve learned that career moves are absolutely terrifying and there is a lot of doubt and, just it’s like the fear of like unknowing what’s going to happen next, but then when you come out the other side, like you just see that the process was so worth it, especially if you were really wanting to leave and had a lot of doubt about staying and teaching.
Elizabeth: That was very impactful. And especially the part that I’m still thinking about is if you need to get out of, you know, something that’s negatively impacting you, you can, and just like knowing that you have the skills and the confidence to be able to move on. I’ve learned so much and I’m really excited to kind of follow you and hear what your nonprofit continues to do to support students.
So Kait, thank you so much for spending part of your day with us.
Kait: Yes, of course. Thank you so much for having me. I love being able to share this and kind of hopefully it gives encouragement and ideas for anyone else who’s looking to leave the education system.
