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December Teacher Spotlight

How long have you been a teacher? This is year 17 for me. That’s a prime number, so I must be in my prime *chuckle, snort*

Where have you taught and where do you currently teach? Grade? Content? After teaching in Jefferson Parish during the Hurricane Katrina year (my first), I landed at LCS when it opened as a new high school on Freret St, Uptown. I’ve been there ever since, and I currently teach PreCalculus Honors, AP Calculus AB, and AP Calculus BC. LCS is to be renamed soon, and if curious, you’ll find recent news articles revealing why I and others decline to recognize the school by its historical name.

Why did you choose teaching? My undergrad degree is in Mechanical Engineering, and after college I spent nine years working for Lockheed Martin Space Systems in my home state of California. The pay was great, but each year added to a growing sentiment that the aerospace industry wasn’t where I was meant to spend my career. Recalling how much I learned to love Math in high school, I followed a gut instinct to revisit that setting from the teacher’s side of things.

What piece of advice would you give to new teachers? Those early months/years can be brutal. If you had hoped to find your calling in teaching but are finding yourself demoralized, I hope you can develop a support system that helps you commiserate and weather that early storm. For all the times I felt like quitting in my first few years, I’m so glad I stuck with it. Old and new challenges arise every year, but now that I’ve found my footing, the good far outweighs the bad. If the challenges are truly unbearable, perhaps a change of scenery is warranted, but I urge new teachers to lean on any friends and/or colleagues who can assure that the potential for fulfilling work still exists in teaching.

What’s a funny or inspiring anecdote you have from teaching? In summer 2020 CollegeBoard hired me to be one of 8 teachers to develop and record video AP Calculus AB lessons for their “AP Daily” initiative. The intent was to provide supplemental resources at a time when teachers struggled more than ever to reach their students personally and academically. Every so often I get a random email from a student somewhere in the country or the world telling me that they enjoyed and benefited from the videos I contributed to that program. I’d like to think that I’m a pretty self-assured adult by now, and positive interactions with my own students fuel me greatly. But there’s something really special about a young person who I’ll never meet taking the time to offer me such kind affirmations.

What are you reading right now? Everything and More by David Foster Wallace, about the Mathematical concept of infinity. A recent student gave it to me after reading it herself. In return, I gave her my copy of Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea by Charles Seife. I loved being able to exchange books about two opposing topics (infinity and 0) that were both extremely controversial in Math history, yet once harnessed, allowed Math to advance by leaps and bounds. 

What are your hobbies? I greatly enjoy dabbling in computer graphics, cartooning, illustrating, and animating. And word on the street is that if you were to do a web search for “mathematical love poem,” you may find some videos and/or animations of some scintillating odes to Math.

What’s one word that describes your teaching style or how do you think your students would describe you? I’d say “enthusiastic,” although students might think “intense” is even more appropriate. I feel very fortunate that as I approach two decades into this career, the subject of Math still excites me as much or more than it ever did. So often I find myself thinking, “I can’t believe how beautifully this stuff works!” Why stifle that excitement? The subject of secondary Math needs more advocates and cheerleaders. I want students to witness the thrill of Math and hopefully join in on the fun.

Who inspires you? As corny or cliché as it may sound, nothing inspires me more than the student who perseveres. I adore my fellow Math nerds who consider the subject to be an innate strength. However, I am energized tremendously by the student who perceives Math to be a weakness yet still gives it their all, weathers the tough times, learns from the mistakes, and fearlessly takes the initiative to ask for help. Office hours with motivated students are my favorite part of teaching, and I give as many hours as I can to the student who’s willing to give it their all.

Do you have any recommendations for teachers for whom they should follow on social media? Any websites or other resources you’ve found helpful? For high school Math, the free graphing tools Desmos and GeoGebra are phenomenal toys and educational tools. Most know about Desmos, which is easy to jump into and understand. GeoGebra has a steeper learning curve, but it allows teachers/students to create much more elaborate constructions. Some of my GeoGebra constructions are here.

Favorite food? Peanut butter. Chunky, duh.

Favorite word? “Trigonometric” comes to mind. The way those five syllables roll off the tongue is delightful. And if I’m being honest, it’s a high-brow word that when dispensed with confidence instantly makes the speaker sound erudite.

How would you describe your vibe going into 2022? Despite my earlier assurance to new teachers that the potential for fulfilling work still exists in teaching, I acknowledge that the challenges of teaching through a pandemic have been overwhelmingly taxing. Many times recently I’ve been grateful to have enough good experiences in my teaching history to feel confident that better days must lie ahead. If we can move forward without reverting back to remote/hybrid learning en masse, I’ll at least be thankful to be able to interact with my students in person. Pandemic life is far from over, but my vibe for 2022 is one of resolve to bring back the treasured parts of teaching that I’ve been missing for the past year and a half.