Kirk's rank

[Mr. Laser Beam]

He served as an instructor at the Academy as a Lieutenant.

I've always been of the mind that Kirk's time as an Academy teacher was his way of recovering from the Farragut disaster.

 

[Laura Cynthia Chambers]

That's an interesting thought - modified duty assignment to allow him to recover both emotionally and physically. Teaching philosophy in particular - he can speak of generalities and theories without having to apply them to real world decisions daily.