Traveling to us all the way from Connecticut, Ms. Norrgard joined the Bishop’s community this year as a new Honors Biology Teacher. She is no stranger to the biology world as she taught it to 9th graders in her previous years, but she is looking forward to shifting her focus to 11th graders with solid foundations in chemistry and physics. Additionally, outside of the classroom, she is excited to try out restaurant spots around town and learn golf on the many golf courses that San Diego has to offer.
Q: Okay, so prior to this year, before Bishops, what were you doing? How did you get to this point in your life?
A: I was teaching for ten years at a school in Connecticut, called Brunswick School. And then before that, I graduated from undergrad with a degree in science, and I went directly into grad school to do research, and I was like, ‘I don’t really love this.’ So then I moved back to Connecticut and was kind of trying to figure out what I wanted to do that was science-related, but not lab work. And a friend of my parents was like, you should try teaching. So I did an internship shadowing for a little bit. And then I was like, ‘This is awesome.’ And here I am 10 years later, still doing it.
Q: Specifically, what made you choose Bishop? What attracted you or what did you like about it?
A: So initially I was trying to move to San Diego. I figured if I was going to leave Connecticut that I wanted to go about as different as possible. So I found the farthest place from Connecticut and with the most polar opposite weather.
And then I was looking around San Diego for an independent school that I felt was similar enough to where I was before that I wasn’t going to feel like a total fish out of water. And a friend from back home, her son actually went here. So he goes to Brunswick now as a senior, but he was here before and she was like, ‘You should look at Bishop’s.’ And I did. And it all worked out wonderfully.
Q: Is there anything you hope to accomplish during your time here? Or that you’re looking forward to?
A: I just want to get better at teaching. I was used to teaching 9th graders, so teaching 11th graders is a lot of fun. And you can teach them so much more because of the background that they come in with physics and chemistry. And then you really start to see, kids’ interest in biology start to show. And maybe they think about that as a career trajectory, or at least to study in college. I’m looking forward to kind of seeing how that plays out as opposed to with the 9th graders… So just getting better at teaching the higher level curriculum is what I’m looking forward to,and just learning more about the students. It’s weird coming in and not knowing anybody like I’m used to, because I was there for so long in my previous school. You know, walking into a sea of completely new faces is different. So I’m looking forward to getting to the point where I’ll recognize a lot more than I don’t recognize.
Q: Last but not least, do you have any interests outside of school or hobbies?
A: I have my dog, so usually he’s here. I take him out for walks all the time. I love to hike, which is super cliché, but I like to go exploring in different areas. I’ve hiked in a couple of places in South America and I’m dying to get to Washington [state] and Canada. I’m trying to play golf. I’m learning, so I need to break out my clubs out here because everyone keeps raving about all the golf courses out here. And then, you know, just try to run and go to the gym and stay busy, but also exploring the food scene. I live in North Park so I’m kind of checking out all the places down there.
