What are you doing after college?
This dreaded question makes students cringe at the thought that they will actually have to make a decision.
Kelly Steele ’05 followed her dream to be an animal trainer. Now she’s training orcas at Sea World in Florida.
“I love my bosses- how many people can say that? All of the staff has so much in common through our love for these animals,” said Steele.
At Fairfield, Steele majored in Biology and minored in Marine Science and Math.
Her experience with the MUSE program senior year allowed her to work at aquariums with some marine life.
Her years on the Fairfield swim team really helped her get the job, according to Steele.
One of the hardest parts of the application process is to pass the swim test, she said.
She attributes this success to her experience swimming at Fairfield.
After graduation, Steele remembered her first time at Sea World when she was five years old, and how she told her parents she wanted to be a trainer.
After college, she applied to some aquariums on the East Coast.
The most well known, Sea World, was the only one who returned her call.
Now Steele’s day starts at 6 a.m. where she needs to get 1200 pounds of fish ready for the whales.
Throughout the day, Steele works on the whales’ health, which includes brushing their teeth and taking urine and blood samples.
Some days she teaches them a new behavior, exercises and plays with them.
She also has a relationship session with the whales, which demonstrates care for the animals.
“There’s never a dull day,” Steele said.
One of the most rewarding things is “how attached you grow to the whales, because you take care of them every day,” she said, referring to the 4-month-old whale that Steele has been working with since its birth.
For people who knew Steele prior to obtaining her job, being an animal trainer was a crazy idea.
Yet, she accomplished her goal.
For future Fairfield graduates, Steele’s advice: “No matter what, go after what you want to do.”
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