Southern Lehigh’s new honors and AP chemistry teacher Ms. Rachel Saber may not bring Eastern European folk dancing to mind, but she should. The new teacher committed 11 years of her adolescence to such a group, making her one of a kind among the faculty.

“I’m on YouTube,” Ms. Saber said, “but I won’t tell you how to find it.”

Ms. Saber, who graduated from University of Pittsburgh’s main campus, previously taught at two other school districts in western Pennsylvania. Having majored in natural sciences and minored in chemistry, she was exposed to many different areas of science, and she is certified in biology, chemistry, general science, and earth and space science.

“I learned a little bit of everything, so I’ll make references to other sciences in my class,” she said. “I’ll show the overlaps and connections to chemistry.”

Ms. Saber’s students can attest for her unique teaching style, as well.

“[Her] teaching style gives different perspectives on what she is teaching,” junior Jessica Grossman, an AP chemistry student, said. “It suits individual learning styles.”

Fellow chemistry teacher Mr. Jason Donnelly admires Ms. Saber’s wealth of content knowledge.

“This knowledge goes a long way in helping the other science teachers engage their students with labs and other types of activities,” he said.

Currently, Ms. Saber is teaching two sections of AP Chemistry and four sections of Honors Chemistry.  

While she has no preference towards either AP or honors, she does reveal that they each have their own draw.

“I love teaching honors because you’re getting that solid foundation,” Ms. Saber said, “but I also love AP because we dive in deep, and it’s good to show students what to expect in college-level chemistry.”

Ms. Saber’s love for chemistry extends out of her classroom and into her closet. Her wardrobe consists of five chemistry-themed pairs of shoes, ranging from Bohr’s Atomic Model to the periodic table.

“I [also] have organic molecule shoes, I just recently acquired chemistry glassware shoes, and I have constellation shoes,” Ms. Saber said. “The constellation ones glow in the dark.”

When she is not standing in front of her class teaching, Ms. Saber is at home playing with her five month old tortoiseshell kitten, Skittles. When they are not playing, they are sleeping or watching Netflix together.

“[Skittles] even follows me into the bathroom,” she said.

Ms. Saber, who has been everywhere from the Ukraine to Fall Out Boy concerts, says she is happy that her “chipper personality” has brought her to Southern Lehigh. The new teacher is located in Room 214, and is sure to entertain during her chemistry classes.

“Watch out for fun facts,” Ms. Saber said. “I throw them out all the time.”

“[Ms. Saber’s] bright and quirky personality will put a smile on anyone’s face,” Mr. Donnelly said.