In our new series “Class act,” we introduce new teachers and their backgrounds in and outside the classroom. Read archives from the series here.

Although he now has a PhD in biophysics, Dr. Nolan Harris was not always destined to become a physics teacher.

“Before attending Rice University in order to study physics, I attended West Point,” Harris said. “I had dreamed of being a pilot in the Air Force for a long time, as I grew up in a military background with my father serving in the military.”

However, fate would draw Harris away from his goal of maneuvering fighter jets through the air.

“There were many factors to why I decided to leave West Point after my two years there,” Harris said. “The academics had become too easy to meet my standards of education. Also, my eyes had begun to deteriorate when I tried to take my pilot’s exam, which inhibited me from being a pilot.”

At the age of 19, Harris transferred to Rice University to study a field which had peaked his interest during his training at West Point.

“I had asked around to find out what the best thing to study was to be a great pilot, and I was told that that thing was physics,” Harris said. “However, as soon as I started taking the classes, I was opened up to the beauty of the natural and physical world. I was immediately hooked.”

Harris decided to transfer his skills and love of physics to others through teaching.

“He is very approachable and easy to talk to,” junior Toby Emiola said. “He is very knowledgeable about physics and always has great ways of explaining concepts.”