Chemistry teacher Jackson Rowland worked in a lab before he set foot in a classroom, “So I made more money, but it wasn’t fun. It was kind of boring, and I did the same stuff every day.”

He lived in Boston and loved the area, but not as much as Colorado, “I had to take the subway to work every day, so I didn’t have as much free time. Yeah, and it’s nice having a little more. I get to go on walks every day after school. Now, I have the time to do that. But when I lived in Boston, I would go to work while it was dark, and I would get home while it was dark, so I got like, no sunshine at all.”

Rowland struggles to explain his exact reason for teaching but is hoping to educate future scientists, “That’s a tough question to answer. Probably the fact that I get to educate the future of the world, like I get to teach people the future of you know, the like you guys are the next generation. I’m going to be gone while you guys are making policy and creating the world. So I feel like that’s kind of my favorite thing about it, chemistry, just because I love science.”

Rowland says he can make a positive impact on the world by teaching, “I get to educate the generation of people that will be shaping the world. You guys are going to create the world that we live in, right? I mean, hopefully so. If I get to educate you, then I feel like I’m having a positive impact on the world.”

This is Rowland’s second year at Englewood High School.