Chemistry teacher Matthew Kirk has been teaching for a little over three years; joining the Statesmen this fall. At West Springfield, his former high school, he taught Advanced Placement (AP) and Honors Chemistry; this year, his classes include Chemistry 1 and International Baccalaureate (IB) Chemistry.
“I got my degree [in] chemistry at Mary Washington and went on to get my teaching degree at University of Virginia,” Kirk said.
Kirk had been interested in chemistry since high school and thought about going into medicine.
“I really liked AP Biology and Chemistry [and] I wanted to do more in those subject areas,” he said.
While getting his PhD in chemistry, Kirk was a lab aid, doing work such as preparing solutions and setting up classes for professors.
“I am a geek,” he said. “I unabashedly admit it.”
During that experience, he learned that he “really liked setting up the labs for the professors and introducing [them] to students.”
He went on to be a sports camp counselor at Mar-Lu-Ridge Year Round Retreat and Conference Center, for a couple of summers.
“I really enjoyed teaching kids about all the different sports,” Kirk said. “That?s when I decided I wanted to be a teacher.”
This is Kirk?s first year teaching an IB curriculum, and the difference is not too dramatic, according to Kirk.
“So far, there hasn?t been a huge change,” he said. “It?s what we cover after the SOL that will really make the difference.”
Kirk has continued his interest in coaching and teaching sports; he is currently the pole vaulting coach at West Springfield.
“I ran track and field in high school; I didn?t do pole vaulting,” Kirk said. “There was a need [at West Springfield], so I did some reading about pole vaulting and now I?m a coach.”
As a teacher, Kirk has also garnered praise from members of his classes.
Mubarak Al-Naimi, a sophomore in Kirk?s Chemistry 1 class, had positive things to say about Kirk.
“Whenever I don?t understand something you can just come in [at lunch] and he will always be there,” he said.