Dave Reinke has a passion for education and wanted to explore teaching after working as a tech consultant for 25 years. He was able to retire early allowing him to pursue teaching as his second career and is now a Geometry teacher at Naz. 

Renike is the father of two adult children and has been married to his wife for over 25 years. He is an avid biker and looks forward to a future with grandkids. “One thing I do look forward to is being a grandpa. I want to spoil them and do all the fun things you do with your grandchildren; that’s the one thing I would be extremely happy to experience,” said Renike

In his previous tech life, Reinke started his own company called Inquidia Consulting and grew the business with a couple of partners. He has a Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science and then went back to get his Master’s Degree in Computer Science. Reinke has been able to apply some of the same skills he acquired in his tech career. Often, he would instruct and train others and now he instructs inside a classroom. 

Reinke said that his favorite part of teaching so far is the students. He enjoys the energy the students give off and he likes to see young minds at work. The most challenging part is that the job is very physically demanding and exhausting. He said the job takes a lot of energy and he has a lot more respect for teachers now. Reinke said, “You know, at an office job you have a lot more time for yourself and down time, with teaching, you are always working.”

Reinke lives by something Theodore Roosevelt said, “It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood.” Reinke applies Roosevelt’s thoughts in the classroom. “I want to inspire my students to get in the arena and try new things. I want them to try something out of their comfort zone,” he said.

Reinke likes to travel as much as he can. He recommends that if anyone ever gets the chance, they should go to Europe and expand their horizons. He has traveled to Madrid, Rome, Spain, and Paris. He likes different places for different reasons, and he enjoys viewing the many cultures and people that come with all the places he visits. Reinke is an advocate for learning about other cultures and seeing what various countries are like.