Angela Koch

Mrs. Koch By Cayden Seltz, grade 12 I remember walking into Mrs. Koch’s class sophomore year, there she was, so enthusiastic and welcoming. “I’m so happy to see new faces!” she said. I remember the energy she radiated during her class lectures, she made me excited to learn more about chemistry. It didn’t take long for chemistry to become my favorite class. Although I had ADHD and was not yet on the correct medication my sophomore year, I found myself fully engaged in Mrs. Koch’s class, unlike a lot of my other classes. She would tell stories about atoms and molecules going on dates and would perform dangerous experiments that were both scary and exhilarating. Before I was able to get time accommodations for my ADHD, I always took a while on my tests. In a lot of my classes, I would get bad anxiety when I was forced to turn in stuff by the time the bell rang, knowing I didn’t complete it to the best of my ability. However, Mrs. Koch knew I struggled with time, so she always let me stay after class to finish the tests or quizzes she gave out. Because of Mrs. Koch, I never had anxiety taking tests or quizzes in her class. Every day after her class I had study hall, one where you sat at a lunch table with all your friends and would do work. However, being sophomores in high school we never did our work, we would sit there and talk about the newest gossip. Although I wanted to get my work done, I felt entranced by the conversation amongst my peers, so I never found myself doing it, even if I tried. To combat this, I asked Mrs. Koch to stay in her room after class, and just like the kind teacher she is, she let me. Every day I would stay in her class and begin my homework, and every day I finished my homework. Whenever I’d need help, I’d get nervous about speaking up for myself. This changed when I met Mrs. Koch. She never once got frustrated with a question and always encouraged me to ask more. She always welcomed questions and would do her best to make sure I’d fully understand anything I was confused about. She made sure to get it through to everyone to never be afraid to ask questions, since scientists were always asking questions, and in her class, we were all scientists. Mrs. Koch really got through to me about asking questions, and I can thank her for consistently being told by other teachers that they like that I am a strong advocate for my education. During quarantine, Mrs. Koch was one of the teachers that would do her absolute best to help her students. She would always have zooms open for questions and did an excellent job making videos as close to in-person class as possible. Because of this, I was able to keep up with chemistry and continue doing what I love. Mrs. Koch is everything a good teacher is and more. Because of her, I will be majoring in chemistry at UW Madison to become a chemical geneticist.

Cayden Seltz