Working in marketing for over 10 years, Mrs. Renee Dubber never expected herself to become a teacher. As a student who vehemently hated high school, Mrs. Dubber swore that she would never step foot in one again. Now a teacher at Seminole High School, Mrs. Dubber insists that switching to a teaching job is the best decision she ever made.

Dubber was a successful marketing manager for almost 10 years. Her fast-paced life entailed much travel to new places.

“It was really exciting for me. I’d always loved traveling and then I’d ended up getting a job where I was getting paid to travel. I was really living the dream.”

However, this dream began to diminish when Dubber realized how little time she was spending with her children. Working for Speedway, she was transferred to Florida and decided to opt for a more family-oriented life in order to make it easier for her children.

“The kids got comfortable and they were happy and making friends. Eventually, I got comfortable too,” said Dubber. “I got a job teaching inner-city kids in downtown Orlando and loved it. When I was teaching there, I first realized that I could see myself doing this for an extended time.”

Dubber joined the Seminole community in 2013 to teach Digital Design. Still attached to her marketing background, she decided to sponsor the Business Professionals of America (BPA) Club last year.

“I knew when I took on this club that I wanted to take these teams not just to compete, but win,” said Dubber. “I was so proud when the Global Marketing team made it to Nationals in our first year.”

BPA is a club that is designed to teach and expose to those who would like to pursue careers in business fields about those fields.

Treasurer Lizzie Mccown said, “I’m so glad that Mrs. Dubber was our sponsor. She helped us so much with our presentation skills and professionalism. I have no doubt that one of the main reasons we made it so far is solely based on her.”

Being a sponsor of BPA requires a lot of time outside of school. Dubber had to fill out many packets of paperwork, and register Seminole High on the national website. In addition, she had to donate her own money and pitch the club to different local businesses, in order to allow those who couldn’t afford the $50 club fee to be able to participate.

Co-President Anna Jurlina said, “When I first wanted to start this club, not one teacher was willing to take the time to help me. Mrs. Dubber was so enthusiastic and spent so much of her time to make this club possible. I’m extremely grateful to her.”

Dubber hopes that now Seminole High has made it to nationals, more students will join and make it the top school in the region. In addition, she hopes that with students being exposed to real-life business scenarios it will encourage more students to venture into the business field.