The four branches of science available in high school are earth and space, biology, chemistry, and physics. Out of all available standardized tests, the Physics AP test is known for being arguably the hardest AP test available to take. Anyone taking the class to prepare for the test knows that the road they’re about to take will be long and difficult, but there’s a teacher out there looking to make this journey less stressful. That teacher’s name is Katherine Linton. 

After spending three years at Hammond High School teaching physics and chemistry followed by six years at Wilde Lake High School teaching Physics AP, Ms. Linton came to Oakland Mills High School to teach Physics AP because of the school’s reputation. She came to OMHS due to the school “being diverse and accepting of all personal backgrounds,”  a belief she supports heavily. The uniqueness that OMHS provides only aids Ms. Linton’s teaching style. She knew she wanted to be a physics teacher since she was a teenager, having viewed American astrophysicist, Neil deGrass Tyson, as a role model. 

 To feel more at hOMe, Ms. Linton has settled in by painting the back of her room with a nebula. This comes from her interest in astronomy combined with her hobby of art. Although she never really thought about pursuing art as a career, she owns an art business that supports her hobby. Ms. Linton was always fascinated in astronomy, but the closest she was able to get to astronomy in college was “a physics degree with a specialty in astrophysics,” which is a subsidiary of astronomy that focuses on celestial bodies such as stars and their physical states. Her interest in astronomy was how she got on the physics teacher path, but before she completely realized that career, she mentioned that she worked at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), stating that it “was certainly cool to talk about and bring field experience to my students.”

Ms. Linton has a lot of pride in her field of work. She believes that the subject of physics should almost be mandatory due to how important physics is as a whole. She stated that physics is “a very great foundational science for all students, and it also opens up an avenue for tangential sciences,” the tangential science for her being astronomy in this case. Her main goal for the 2019-20 school year is to adjust to the OMHS population of students, and she emphasized the importance of forming good relationships with her students. She also emphasized the importance of “trying to make science accessible to students” by making it interesting and like able. She makes herself readily available to students in multiple ways, including her email and an after school study session on Wednesdays. 

If you are a student in Physics AP, and if you are worried that you’ll be lost in the shuffle, Ms. Linton will be in Room 806 to get you back on your feet and keep going. Ms. Linton will encourage you to never give up. Her limit to help isn’t just the sky but the stars above it. She’ll help take your knowledge in physics to infinity and beyond before the big test comes months from now. The journey will undoubtedly be tough, but at the end of the day, statistics won’t define how smart you are; the end results beyond the statistics will.