Alumnus retires after decades teaching and serving as a first responder

K.R. Ziarkowski has made a career out of helping people, whether in the classroom or in emergency situations.

He transferred to St. Cloud State University in the 1970s, where he earned his bachelor’s degree in management in 1978. He spent the next decade working in retail and financial management before deciding to go back to school. Ziarkowski always wanted to be a science teacher, but said he had been dissuaded by high school guidance counselors who told him his math grades weren’t strong enough to pursue a career in science.

“I decided, ‘The heck with it. I want to go back and get a science degree,’” he said.

He earned his master’s in biology from SCSU in 1994, and credits the faculty with encouraging and inspiring his continued interest in the subject. After moving to Texas and earning a teaching certification, he started work as a science teacher.

In a way, Ziarkowski feels becoming a new teacher later in life helped him in some aspects. Coming from the “real world” instead of straight out of college in his 20s, he felt he had fewer disciplinary issues with students, allowing him more time to connect with students, gain their respect and get them interested in science.

“Getting kids interested in science and helping them to be successful in life — that’s easily the best part,” he said.

It was while teaching that Ziarkowski found his second calling in life. When the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks occurred, he was inspired by his brother — a volunteer firefighter — to sign up with his local volunteer fire department. He would later train to be a medic as well after a harrowing experience on the job treating a 15-year-old gunshot victim.

“That was the age of our kids, and I just said, ‘I want to be a medic,’” Ziarkowski said. “When I joined the fire department, the fire chief said, ‘You're going to meet people on the on the worst day of their life up to that point.’”

He’d go on to use his background as an educator to train other medics.

“It felt good to be able to help. And being a volunteer, you're not doing it for pay or anything,” he said. “It was because that's what we wanted to do.”

Ziarkowski retired from teaching amid the COVID-19 pandemic, following more than 20 years in the field. He and his wife have since moved from Texas to Wisconsin. His EMS license from Texas doesn’t transfer to Wisconsin, and at his wife’s suggestion, he’s considering being fully retired from both professions as he approaches 70 years of age.

“I do miss it, though,” he said.

He keeps busy in retirement through the sport of fencing and as a drummer in a first responder band.

He encouraged others, whether they’re pursuing a career in science, teaching, emergency services or something else, to follow their passions. It’s never too late to go back to school or change career paths if something isn’t the right fit.

“I’m glad I went for science anyway, and did things on my terms,” he said. “Make sure you know what you're getting into, but both careers … they were very rewarding.”