Background

Meet Eunice Lee, a professional who took her corporate expertise and channeled it into something completely different – special education. Before making this inspiring switch, Eunice built an impressive career at companies like Accenture, Toyota Financial Services, and The Capital Group. She spent a decade mastering business transformation, bringing her skills to projects like creating a data mart for recovery practices and developing a new loan origination system for auto financing. With three years in systems integration consulting and five years in investment banking under her belt, Eunice has now found her calling in education, where she supports high-needs students with IEPs (Individualized Education Programs).

Q&A with Eunice Lee

What sparked your interest in making this career change?

When you get down to it, consulting is all about building relationships, understanding what people need, and getting different teams to work together smoothly. At the height of Covid, I found myself at The Capital Group working with people in client-facing roles I never would have encountered at Toyota Financial Services. Our team was tasked with reimagining the future of marketing-to-sales capabilities, and seeing their sense of purpose really got me thinking about my own path.

During this time, I couldn’t help but notice teachers sharing their struggles on social media as they dealt with Covid. Watching them burn out and leave the profession one by one really hit home for me. I worried about the kids who were losing their teachers while everything about education was up in the air. That’s when it clicked – I realized I could make a real difference in schools.

I’ve always been someone who leads with empathy and passion, and I look for roles where I can put those qualities to good use.

What does your current role look like, and how did you land there?

I took the leap in 2022, leaving The Capital Group to get my master’s in teaching at USC. I thought I’d end up teaching middle school math, but after facing period after period of 30+ students, I realized I couldn’t give kids the individual attention I knew they needed. That’s what led me to become a paraeducator working with students who have special needs.

Right now, I work one-on-one with a student who has moderate autism. It’s about so much more than just catching up on classwork – we work on coping strategies, finding motivation, and all sorts of life skills. I also run a small remediation group after school.

How do your previous career skills come into play in education?

Building trust and relationships is still at the heart of what I do. I need to be there to listen and work well with all kinds of personalities, creating an environment where everyone can thrive. Working with different teams in a school – special education staff, administrators, students, and parents – feels a lot like managing stakeholders in consulting.

I really have to put my problem-solving skills to work every day, especially when it comes to seeing things from different angles. My tech background from Accenture comes in handy in unexpected ways. It helps me look at education challenges through both practical and technical eyes. You know how consulting is all about using data to make decisions? It turns out education is exactly the same. I’m constantly looking at what the data is telling me to figure out the best way to work with each student.

One thing that really helps is being able to step into different shoes. I’m always asking myself: If I’m the student, what do I need right now? If I’m the parent, what are my hopes for my child? If I’m the school, what concrete progress can we show?

Do people notice something different about your approach in education?

My mentor in education pointed out something interesting – he said I bring a level of confidence and maturity to dealing with kids and parents that you don’t usually see in new teachers. While many longtime teachers might be set in their ways after 20-30 years, my background helps me stay creative and adaptable. Just like in consulting, where we focused on helping clients feel empowered to work better and smarter, I’m helping my students not just learn, but discover what they’re naturally good at and how to build on those strengths.

How did your circle react when you decided to make this change?

To be honest, it was a huge leap that raised quite a few eyebrows among my family and friends. They had trouble wrapping their heads around why I’d make this move. Going against the grain like this meant I had to be absolutely certain about my passion for it. Not only did my income take a significant hit, but I also had to invest in going back to school. It wasn’t an easy choice, but it was the right one for me.

What would you tell someone thinking about making a big career switch?

Take a step back and ask yourself: What unique value could I bring to this new field? What kind of legacy do I want to leave behind? These questions really helped guide my decision. Think about what you’re naturally good at and where those skills are needed most.

Finding Purpose in Change

Eunice Lee’s journey from the corporate world to special education shows how valuable diverse professional experience can be in unexpected places. Her story, shared by Blue Sky Professional Services, reminds us that career transitions, while challenging, can lead to deeply meaningful work when guided by passion and purpose.