Education

Are you considering a career as a teacher? If so, the LBCC Education Department can help. Working closely with Oregon State University, you can prepare for a career in pre-elementary education, child development, or teaching at the elementary and secondary levels.

Prepare for a Degree in Education

How can you take your first step toward becoming a teacher? What if you want to explore teaching as a possible career, but you’re not yet ready to make a decision? The LBCC Education Department has some advice for you. View these recommended steps for preparation.

Student Profile

"My name is Jesus Munoz, and I’m originally from a small town called Bloomfield, New Mexico, located in the four corners region. I graduated high school in 2012, and I attended Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colorado where I had the opportunity to play football.

With time, I realized that the team and the school were not a good fit for me, so I decided to leave Fort Lewis and ended up working in the Oil and Natural gas industry for my father. We did oil field constructions, so I was able to gain skills in contracting work. While working for my dad, I attended San Juan Community College in Farmington, New Mexico.

I discovered that the Oil and Natural Gas Industry was not a stable career, and I really did not know what I was going to do for a job. About two years after the Deputy Chief of Police in Bloomfield, NM approached me, I realized that I wanted to pursue a career in Law Enforcement.

In 2018, I was hired as a Cadet for the Police Department in Bloomfield. I attended the Police Academy and gained college credits for that. After the academy, I met my wife who is originally from Eugene, Oregon. We were married at Seal Rock Beach, in September 2020 during the heat of Covid. I don't know how I convinced her to leave Oregon for New Mexico but I did.

I served for the Bloomfield Police Department from 2018- 2022, and my last assignment was being a School Resource Officer. I loved this part of the job, and I loved interacting with the students. This made me realize I needed to be a teacher instead of an officer, because I could do more for students and give them more time as a teacher. I resigned from the Police Department, and my wife and I moved to Sweet Home, Oregon.

When my wife and I moved to Sweet Home in August, Linn-Benton Community College was the closest college. I had not taken any classes since 2016, so I was not sure how to restart my collegiate journey. I decided to call the admissions office where they said they were taking applications for the Fall 2022 term. I submitted my application and was accepted.

As graduation gets closer, I’m reflecting on some highlights of LBCC. The staff at the college is incredibly personable. All the professors that I have had have been awesome, and they are truly experts in their fields. The small class sizes are great as well because you can't hide, which makes me work harder. I also enjoy the 10-week terms, they keep me on top of all my work because it’s fast-paced, and LBCC is also very affordable which is always a bonus.

If you are feeling a strong desire to change your career or you feel like your current career is not a good fit for you, those feelings are real, and you shouldn't be scared or discouraged to make a change. It is scary at first, but once you take that first step everything will fall into place. There may be some obstacles in the way, but because you are following that strong desire to make a change, those obstacles will be a little bit easier to overcome."