Ryan Stowers

1.

I grew up in rural Utah in a very religious family that really focused on helping others.

2.

I served a two-year mission in Hungary after high school—my service combined with my mother’s influence as a nurse made me decide that I wanted to keep helping others by becoming a doctor.

3.

After completing my mission, I came back to Utah for college.

4.

While studying, I also started to engage in different medical training programs and gain experience in the medical field—I worked as a nurse’s aide, a phlebotomist, and a surgical tech.

5.

As I gained more experience, I realized there were aspects of medicine that I didn’t enjoy—I also grew more interested in my humanities classes and the impact that ideas can have on humanity.

6.

I decided to leave medicine and pursue humanities instead—I earned a bachelor’s degree in both liberal arts and political science, and then a master’s in political economy.

7.

I started working in program management and then joined the Charles Koch Foundation as program officer.

8.

I’ve been at the Charles Koch Foundation for the last 15 years and have worked my way up to my current position as executive director.