“Get your hands up!”

A revolver is pointed at his head. He is forced to lie face down on the desert floor. The man aiming the weapon has been drinking. Hard.

“I ought to just shoot you right now,” the man says. As another car pulls up, he breathes a sigh of relief. At least now there will be a witness to his murder.

It’s another day of work at what this City College biology instructor calls a “dream job.”

That thwarted attempt to collect insects on land he thought was state-owned wasn’t a typical day in the life of David Wyatt. But as a professor, he is well aware of the valuable role entertainment plays in the classroom, so he tells the story with relish.

“I think being an educator,” Wyatt says, “you have to be a performer as well.”

For the non-science major, instruction mixed with good storytelling can create connection and open up the material. For that sake, Wyatt is ready to check his ego at the door. He isn’t above looking silly if there’s a lesson in the laughter.

“I’ll be in front of the classroom, strutting around like a male sage grouse so they can see what that’s like,” he says with a laugh. “Of course it’s funnier than heck, but they’ll remember it!”

With 15 years of teaching, Wyatt says if he can entertain students and they learn at the same time, it’s all worth it.

“I love teaching from the storytelling method,” Wyatt says. “That’s the way we’ve learned history through the ages.”

Seeing someone’s interest sparked by what they’ve learned is one of the best parts about teaching for Wyatt. He calls it the “wow factor.”

“Dave is able to make biology accessible,” says colleague and friend Steve James. “He is able to take what many would find a bit offensive—like insects or bats—and make them intensely interesting.”

After 10 years as a Caltrans biologist, Wyatt brings a wealth of experience to the classroom. It’s hard to believe his first choice was to become a cop.

Born in Hawaii in 1962, Wyatt settled in Sacramento as a child. As a student at American River College, he originally majored in criminal justice. But a class at ARC called California Natural History changed the course of his life and inspired him to pursue biology. Once he entertained becoming a game warden, but was put off by the idea of dealing negatively with people. As an instructor, Wyatt exposes people to the wonders of the natural world instead of policing those who harm it.

Sharing what he loves with 250 students every semester, he says he sometimes comes to work and thinks, “I can’t believe they’re paying me to do this.”

His enthusiasm is contagious.

Many of Wyatt’s students, including some who thought they could never have made it as a science major, have gone into the field based on Wyatt’s influence, according to James.

His influence extends beyond the classroom. He also acts as the biological adviser for the Middle Mountain Foundation, a non-profit organization that educates the public about the Sutter Buttes, located in California’s Central Valley and known as the smallest mountain range in the world. Leading hikes into the area, Wyatt uses his expertise on bats to teach about the world’s only flying mammal. The hikes attract everyone from curious students to engineers to stay-at-home moms.

“He’s wonderful at explaining the processes as he’s going through them,” says Laura Lush, president of the foundation’s board of directors. “He interacts with people as gently and kindly as he does with the animals.”

With environmental concerns at an all-time high, Wyatt is embracing the opportunity to help students recognize their power to change the world.

“Dave cares that his students are well-prepared to investigate and better understand the natural world that they will inherit,” James says.

From fields of blooming desert flowers during winter in Death Valley to the first time he saw a Vermillion Flycatcher, Wyatt’s list of awe-inspiring moments is long. He hopes students will be inspired by his stories to make some small change in the world for good.