By Derrick Smith

Benjamin Lentz has held a number of different jobs over the years, and he says that each one of them was for a purpose. Now, as an educator at Oklahoma Bible Academy, he hopes to make an impact on the lives of the students that are in his classroom.

“While I have had many different careers, I feel I have been blessed that God has always placed me in the location I was most needed at that time,” Lentz said. “Whether that be Iraq after 9-11 or treating hospital patients during COVID-19. This is a key time in the future of our education system for so many reasons, and at the most, I hope I can be a part of returning it to its core mission.”

Lentz teaches high school science and this year he added above-level sixth-grade math. His wife Allison teaches kindergarten for Enid Public Schools, and they have three kids. 

While he feels called to be a teacher, Benjamin says that there are moments that he loves when his students begin to understand what is being taught.

“I love the light bulb moments,” he said. “When you can see in a student’s eyes and hear the change in their voice when they finally truly understand a new challenging topic. It is, in a small way, opening up an entirely new section of the world to them that they may have heard of before, but now really understand.”

As a teacher, Lentz has been given advice from other teachers. Out of all that advice, he says that there is some that he really appreciates.

“The first bit of advice I was given is do not ever lie to a student,” he said. “They can tell if you do not know something. Just admit you do not know, but show the curiosity that got you into learning and teaching when you say, ‘let’s go find out the answer together’.”