My first AP course in high school was AP Biology. I signed up to take it because a) I have an insatiable interest in Biology and b) I wanted the opportunity to take a class with Mr. Eric Thiel— who was also named a Class Nobel Educator of the Year by the National Society of High School Scholars.
I’m not going to lie—the class was hard. Although I had always been an A-student, I struggled for D’s on the exams, but that did not deter my interest in the subject matter. Mr. Thiel’s perspective and his accessible explanations of complex material kept me intrigued, while—unfortunately—many of my peers tried to discourage me because a) I didn’t test as highly as they did, b) I was involved in extra-curricular activities which didn’t allow me the time to study as much as they did and c) believe it or not… because I’m a girl.
You’re think that would be a thing. But it was.
Three days before the end of the semester I went into Mr. Thiel’s office hours to thank him. I wanted him to know that, despite the fact that I wasn’t the highest scoring kid in the class—I really cared about biology. And I retained the information better than a lot of the kids who tested through easily. And I said, to Mr. Thiel, “I really love biology… it seems like a language I can speak… but I didn’t do as well…” and at that moment, he interrupted me saying, “Stop… stop… stop… I know what you’re going to say. Just go for it. I think you should go for it.”
I’m so glad and so lucky I went in that day, because Mr. Thiel passed away from a sudden heart attack two days later. I will never forget Mr. Thiel. I will never forget what he did for me and I am forever grateful.
