Inspired by students, elementary school custodian becomes their teacher

When Kevin Knibbs took a job as a custodian at an elementary school, he had no idea that would be the start of a career working with children.

The 33-year-old from Dade City, Florida, quickly learned that he enjoyed interacting with kids, and after nearly a decade as a custodian, he enrolled in college and signed up for education classes. "I wanted something that would drive me and make me happy for the next 20 years," he told the Tampa Bay Times. While in school and student teaching, Knibbs kept his job, working long hours and relying on a steady stream of coffee.

Knibbs is now in the middle of his first year at Cox Elementary School, teaching third grade. His principal, Kim Natale, says Knibbs is a role model for all students, telling the Tampa Bay Times he "brings that lens of perseverance and that lens of having a dream and working to accomplish it. Children in our day and age need to have people in their lives who have worked through that experience, worked to achieve their goals."

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