Teaching has been a long-time passion of FHS chemistry teacher Zachary Epperson. Epperson’s interest in the profession began when he was a high school student; when he saw what his science teachers were doing, he came to realize that teaching was one of the best ways to continue studying science, while passing it down to the next generation of students. Epperson’s teaching career started at Aptos High School, where he taught for four years before his move to FHS, where he has been teaching chemistry for the past five years.
Epperson’s approach to teaching chemistry attempts to make the courses as interesting as possible. He does this by maximizing the “hands-on” aspect of the course, like labs, and when that is not possible, physical demonstrations.
“I’ll do my best to find something that will be, something that students can see that’s not so abstract, because chemistry can kind of feel like math, often, where it’s just abstract, it’s in your head,” Epperson said. “You have to visualize these things in your mind, but in reality, you can see these things if you know to look for them.”
In addition to Chemistry Honors, Epperson teaches AP Chemistry, which is widely regarded as one of the hardest AP classes offered. The course packs a substantial amount of content in a relatively short amount of time. While most AP classes often finish learning material several weeks before the test, allowing for plenty of time to review, this is not the case with AP Chemistry. As such, Epperson uses a slightly different approach to prepare his students for the AP test. He notes that AP Chemistry is more of a self-paced course and that a lot of the work is revisable, so students can review and get better at different skills before they are tested on them.
“I make sure that for what the College Board is going to test you on, for the AP test, that we do cover every topic,” Epperson said. “And then I give out lots of material that you can use as a reference throughout your time of studying, and then also when you’re reviewing.”
FHS junior Ximena Esquivel, who is currently taking AP Chemistry, finds Epperson’s teaching style very helpful.
“Even though AP Chemistry is self-paced, he gives you all the resources that you need to actually be able to succeed in the class,” Esquivel said. “And he’s a really good teacher when it comes to one-on-one tutoring. And if he can’t answer your question, he will always give you extra help to make sure that you can get to a conclusion eventually.”
FHS junior Mahesh Kodam, who is also currently taking AP Chemistry, agrees.
“I like how his teaching style is very interactive and adapts to all the students’ needs,” Kodam said.
Outside of the classroom, Epperson has many hobbies. During the summer, he enjoys hiking and going to the beach. He has four kids, and as such, enjoys spending time with his family., He also enjoys working in his backyard.
“We have a pretty big yard, and so I try to make that a fun and livable place,” Epperson said. “A lot of it’s like gardening and just beating back the massive wood[s] that [are] always trying to invade our home.”
