by Ava Cashman ’24
Kingswood Oxford is thrilled to welcome Upper School mathematics teacher Ryan Harris to the KO community this year! Mr. Harris brings his passion for math along with seven years of teaching experience and an extensive background in engineering and mathematics.
Mr. Harris received his Bachelor’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering from Union College. With the original goal of becoming a professor, Mr. Harris entered Cornell University’s Ph.D. program for Material Science and Engineering, eventually redirecting his path and completing his master’s degree in the field.
After stepping into an interim science teaching role at The Peddie School, Mr. Harris discovered his passion for teaching. Following that experience, Mr. Harris taught at Kent School for six years. Kent School has a robust engineering program to which Mr. Harris strongly contributed to. His role in the engineering program consisted of teaching both engineering and mathematics classes, providing boundless experiences that he will surely bring to KO.
In his first year as a Wyvern, Mr. Harris will be teaching AP Calculus AB and Precalculus Honors. Mr. Harris’ sample lesson to KO students proved to be a light at the end of the tunnel following teaching during the COVID-19 era. “My demo lesson here was the first lesson in about two years that I got to teach without wearing a mask,” Mr. Harris shared. “It was such a great experience! The students were great, the campus is lovely, and I definitely had a good first impression of KO.”
This year Mr. Harris is looking forward to connecting with the students both in and out of the classroom. In addition to being a key member of the math faculty, Mr. Harris has already immersed himself in the KO community, taking on an advisory role for the Robotics Team and coaching the Math Team in the winter season.
Mr. Harris hopes to instill confidence within his students to find joy and success in math, a subject which many, including himself, often struggle with. “In my high school experience, I found math to be a challenging subject, and one that frustrated me,” Mr. Harris said. “Now, having gone through grad school and understanding math pretty well, it helps me relate to students who might be struggling with certain aspects of math.”
Mr. Harris is excited about the experience of teaching at a day school and engaging with the community in different ways than one would at a boarding school. “This is a different paradigm for me,” Mr. Harris said. “At my boarding school, I was a dorm parent, so I really took on a much different role, and now I get to focus more on the education and academic side of things. I’m really looking forward to seeing what that brings.”
Outside of teaching, Mr. Harris has a great passion for bicycling. He occasionally dabbles in singing and building Lego sets, and as a new father, Mr. Harris cherishes time spent with his family. Kingswood Oxford happily welcomes Mr. Harris, and we are eager to see all of the contributions and support that he will bring to the community!
