Teaching was not part of the plan for Dr. Jennifer Gray.
Not when she moved across the country from New England to the Central Valley with her husband. Not as she worked her way through graduate school at UC Berkeley. Not after 18 years working in medical technology.
Yet, almost three decades later, she finds herself in her favorite place – at Madera Community College helping students navigate their way through the complexities of the human body and how to treat it.
“Because I was in the healthcare field, I liked to take care of people and help them. I kind of have that wish to help other people, but I’m doing it as an instructor now,” Gray said.
After a childhood that featured time living in France and various parts of the United States thanks to her father’s job, Gray landed on the East Coast. She earned a bachelor’s degree at UMass before moving cross country to California with her husband to California. She always had a goal of working in medicine, something she went on to do for nearly two decades.
While pursuing another master’s degree at Fresno State, Gray decided to get a teaching credential. She called it a backup plan, never envisioning it would be anything other than something she’d do during grad school.
After earning her master’s degree, Gray continued to teach part-time at the community college level, developing a newfound passion for working with students along the way.
In 1996, at the behest of a colleague, she applied for a position at what was about to become a satellite campus in Madera for Reedley College. Almost 30 years later, she can’t imagine doing anything else. More importantly, she can’t imagine doing the job anywhere else.
“I think it’s just the gratification that I get from working with the students. They’re so appreciative. It’s really about the students,” Gray said. “The faculty and staff have been good and supportive, but it’s really centered around the demographics at Madera. It’s a very diverse population and because they’re underserved they’re very appreciative.”
Ultimately, the faces in front of her are what has kept her coming back to the Madera community. In a community that struggles with poverty, education is often the difference between success and struggle, something Gray has seen first hand.
During her time in the classroom, Gray has countless success stories of students who have used their time at the college to learn about medicine and go be a force for good in the world. Many of her students have gone on to be Physicians Assistants, Registered Nurses or found employment in the allied health field. Some have continued on to medical, pharmacy or dental school.
She’s even had students become faculty at other schools themselves, taking some of the lessons she once taught back to their own students.
And, after all these years, the woman who guided them is still going strong.
With classes in biology, human physiology and microbiology on her docket, the doctor who never saw herself as a teacher is still helping mold the next generation of medical professionals.
It’s not the path she once envisioned. But it’s one she’s certainly come to love.
“I really enjoy the students and the opportunity to help them with their educational careers,” Gray said. “I think that’s probably why I’ve been here so long.”
