When Marvel went bankrupt in the mid- 1990s, Trimpe returned to college for his master's degree, and taught art at a rural middle/high school for two years.
When Marvel went bankrupt in the mid- 1990s, Trimpe returned to college to finish his bachelor's degree, and then attended a master's degree program at SUNY New Paltz. Afterward, he taught art at a rural middle/high school for two years.