Michelle Young is opening up.

Bachelor Nation fans first met Michelle on Season 25 of “The Bachelor,” and she went on to be the Season 18 Bachelorette.

Throughout her time on the shows, Michelle has been outspoken about her work as an elementary school teacher.

She’s shared how she hopes to change the world and is extremely passionate about having a positive impact on her students.

Now, around a year and a half since she first appeared on our screens, Michelle has announced that she is going to be taking her passion for change out of the classroom.

Michelle, like many teachers around the world, has experienced a very challenging past few years teaching amid a pandemic.

During this week’s episode of the “Bachelor Happy Hour” podcast, Michelle opened up about a candid conversation she had with one of her co-workers that led to an a-ha moment for her.

The former Bachelorette said, “I was sitting down with my co-worker and we were talking about this school year and how long we’ve been in survival mode. My co-worker asked me how long I’ve been in survival mode, and as she asked that, it caught me off guard to actually stop and think about how long I’ve been in this position. My response was two years. I have been in survival mode for two years where I just have been flying by the seat of my pants. I have not necessarily been living, just surviving.”

And while Michelle has been in survival mode for the past two years, she knows many other teachers are experiencing the same feeling. So she explained that she hopes to make a difference and use her platform to push for change.

Michelle got choked up as she said, “As I sat and thought about it, it really highlighted the fact that there is so much going on our education system and I really feel that as I move into this next year, I have decided to step out of the classroom. Bear with me, this is going to be emotional. I have decided to step out of the classroom.”

She went on, sharing, “This doesn’t mean that I’m never going to step back into the classroom. This doesn’t necessarily mean that I’m not going to continue working towards my master’s in administration and potentially get back into that direct line of education. But this is me stepping away for a year to truly push forward and put all of my energy and efforts into my passion in a different way. I want to try to push for change. Being in the classroom and feeling that weight showed me that something has to be done.”

We know this is only just the beginning for Michelle and she continues to make a difference in the world. We can’t wait to see what’s next for her!

To hear more of this week’s episode of “Bachelor Happy Hour,” check out the full episode below.