From Teacher to School Nurse – A Second Career

by Vickie Jenkins, Staff Writer

August 2021 won’t come quick enough for Kendra Davis, LPN. Why? That’s when the 2021 school year starts. Kendra just earned the title of Nurse at one of Oklahoma’s local high schools. “I graduated June 17 of this year from Francis Tuttle Technology Center. A fantastic school about which I cannot say enough good things. Thank you Krystal and Sue; my instructors,” Kendra said.
Kendra spent a big portion of her childhood moving. She was born in Colorado but lived in Texas, New Mexico, Maryland, Virginia and Israel. “I moved to New Mexico and then to Oklahoma for college in 1994 where I married an Okie boy and settled here to raise a family.” (story continues below)

“When I was a little girl, my practical career choices were always between teaching and nursing. My in-practical dreams were to be a prima ballerina or a synchronized swimmer in the Olympics,” Kendra said with a smile. “For the last twenty years, I have taught off and on in public schools, along with raising my children. A few years ago, I got to a place where I wanted and needed a change, and nursing was what I wanted to do next. God opened the right doors and I simply walked through them. I feel so blessed to be able to do both of my top career choices in my lifetime. My dad was a nurse; one of those great nurses. He is a huge inspiration to me and he always helps me learn nursing concepts that I need clarification on. He was one of those nurses that went far and beyond. I want to be like him. My mama is also a huge inspiration to me. She inspired the change in the first place,” Kendra commented. “She had also changed careers in mid-life and I knew that since she did it, I could too.”
Asking Kendra what qualities make a good nurse, she replied, “I haven’t been in the trenches, so to speak, so to all of the amazing nurses who have been in the trenches, I salute you and ask you to indulge my naive idealism. I believe to be a good nurse, you have to genuinely care about people. The really good nurses that I see aren’t just competent, they really care. There are so many great nurses in Oklahoma and my priority is to be one of them.”
“Going to nursing school was an especially rewarding part of my life. I loved being there. I found something that I was legitimately passionate about. I enjoyed learning about anatomy, physiology and the medical technology. I love patient care and want to learn everything about it all! My hard work was recognized with an award for academic excellence that I was presented with in front of my class. I had great instructors, family and friends that helped me through nursing school. My biggest cheerleaders were my husband, my parents and best friend, Kari. Every time I talked to Kari, she was very encouraging. She would call me the best nurse in the world, even when I started school,” Kendra said with a laugh. “Everyone should have a best friend like Kari.”
On a personal note, Kendra has been married for twenty-three years to her wonderful and supportive husband, Barry. They have two teenagers, a daughter, Arwyn, who will be a senior this year and a son, Coen, who will be a sophomore. “Being a teacher off and on for years, along with being a stay-at-home mom was good for me. Now, I’m ready for my second career,” Kendra stated.
“My hobbies include dance classes and going kayaking. I love roller-coasters, (the scarier, the better) and roller-skating. I am very interested in trying kite boarding. I do not like cooking at all! I would describe myself as friendly and authentic. I love being in my forties. I wish I could put my forty year old mind in my twenty year old body though. Why does everything hurt now?”
How would you describe yourself in three words? “Keep moving forward! I want to tell people they are not stuck. We have this culture where we are expected to figure out what we want to do and who we want to be right out of high school, doing it for the rest of our lives. I say you can be as many different things as you want to be. My mama taught me that.”