Catching Up with Ms. Gray

Kathryn Gray at Lake James in her uniform. “This job combines both of the things that I love doing. I love getting kids outside. It's really nice to teach in that environmental sense, getting kids to think about nature, even simple things like having them draw what's in front of them, not what they think it should look like,” said Gray. Photo Credit: Kathryn Gray

Aspen Hickman, Staff Writer for The Powderhorn

For years, Kathryn Gray was a beloved teacher at Watauga High School who was immersed in the school community. Not only did she teach, but she also dedicated much of her time to coach the cross country team for multiple seasons. Students loved going outside in her class and experiencing nature through her lens. In the spring semester of 2025, Gray decided to leave the high school for the North Carolina Park Service, a role that she views as an extension of her teaching work. 

“I’m the Schools and Park Specialist at Lake James,” said Gray. “There are eight schools and Park Specialists across the state and our role is to connect schools to the resources of state parks and to make sure that schools in our local communities know that they can come to the state park and get a free educational program and a virtually free field trip. I also connect teachers with grants and other professional development.”

Gray has spent her entire career working to get kids out in nature. However, this wasn’t always what she thought her work would end up looking like. 

“I went to UNC Greensboro undecided. I didn't know what I wanted to do. I was thinking maybe I wanted to be in drama and be a drama teacher,” said Gray. “I took one class called Environment and Religion. It was the best class. Then I took every single one of that professor's classes. He actually gave me my first EE job. He got me a job at the Greensboro Montessori School, and I liked taking the 3 through 6 year olds outside and gardening with them every day. I learned a lot.”

Gray later transferred to UNC Asheville because she’d already taken every class at UNCG related to her career path. There, she earned her degree in ecology and ecobiology. However, even though she’d been working with kids in Greensboro, she still didn’t quite see that as her future.

“I envisioned myself throughout college as going and being alone in the woods, doing surveys or doing studies like that, not really being in front of kids a whole bunch,” said Gray.

After college, Gray got a job at Grandfather Mountain as an education coordinator, a role similar to the one she now has at Lake James. In addition to connecting teachers with the park, Gray makes plans for school groups and guides them on their field trips. Gray works with kids of all ages in this role, just as she did at Grandfather.

“That's how I ended up at Grandfather Mountain. It wasn't something that I always dreamed about, but I was always outside growing up, even when I was little,” said Gray. “I was always in the woods, always outside. I'm super extroverted. I love talking to people. So I laugh at myself thinking that I was going to be in the woods by myself and be okay with that.”

Gray came to Watauga when her own kids were young because she wanted a job with more structured hours. Teaching was an obvious choice after working with kids at Grandfather. 

“[My goal] was to get high schoolers outside to actually see the earth and environmental science going on and happening right in front of them, because that's really what I'm passionate about,” said Gray.

At Lake James, Gray is continuing her goal of working to get kids out in nature. She found the job while teaching forensics at Watauga, after showing her students North Carolina state job listings related to the class. 

“I read the description and I've honestly never felt this way about any position I've worked,” said Gray. “I read it and I was like, did somebody write this for me? This is exactly what I want to be doing.”