Jeremy Jacquot teaches chemistry to freshmen and environmental science electives. This year, he is also serving as the Innovative Teaching Program (ITP) & New Faculty Coordinator.
1. Considering your background in marine biology, what’s your favorite marine organism?
The octopus. I’ve always been fascinated by these smart invertebrates, which definitely rival dogs and cats in their intelligence. And I think octopuses are also very mysterious, because cephalopods communicate with their chromatophores—like flashing lights—and it feels very alien. It’s just this sense of awe around these creatures being so smart.
2. You’re an avid reader. What’s the best book you’ve read this year?
Do you mind if I check? (checks lengthy list on phone) You’re going to have to choose between fiction and non-fiction, because otherwise it’s going to be too hard for me to decide. Fiction? Well, I would say it’s a series: three books called On the Calculation of Volume by Solvej Balle.
3. Give us a piece of life advice.
This is germane to being a teacher, student, and learner, but I have found that the best way to keep enjoying learning is to expose yourself to different ideas. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve become more and more inspired by the life-changing power of “ideas”—which admittedly sounds quaint. But it’s true: I love nothing more than encountering new concepts, questions, and ways of thinking through books, podcasts, and articles. It’s fun to grapple with how my life experiences can inform my interpretation of new ideas, and how these ideas can in turn still inform how I live now.
4. Where have you lived before the Bay Area?
Right after I was born in Switzerland, my parents moved my brother and me to Mountain View. Then, when I was six, we moved to Hong Kong. Then, we moved to Munich. As I was starting middle school, we moved back to the Bay Area. Once I hit high school, I was in Southern California through the end of grad school. Finally, I did my postdoc for a year in Maine.
5. Wow, that’s a lot of places! What’s been your favorite place to live other than the Bay Area?
A lot of this is nostalgia-coded, but I really enjoyed Germany. I love the holidays, and my memories of Christmas markets, the snow, and traditions were shaped by living in Munich. My school really made us students feel special, and teachers would give us gifts like little oranges and little chocolate coins. It really stuck with me. And I just really like that Germany has both modern architecture and castles that are only half an hour away from each other.
6. I’m going to be in your hometown, Yorba Linda, for the next 72 hours. What should I do?
Honestly, I’d say go visit somewhere else—it’s boring! Disneyland is right next door, and both Los Angeles and San Diego aren’t too far away. Maybe I’d appreciate it more now that I’m older, but teenage Jeremy couldn’t wait to graduate from high school and move on. I mainly associate Yorba Linda with two things: its motto of being the “Land of Gracious Living” and its status as Richard Nixon’s birthplace.
7. What is your new role this year?
I have a new role coordinating our innovative teaching program (ITP), which is basically associate teachers. I help have conversations with associate teachers and host biweekly workshops about pedagogy. I’m also helping a little bit with onboarding the new faculty.
8. You’re interested in metacognition strategies for students. What do you think is an underrated metacognition strategy?
While I acknowledge that the reality of being a student may make this impossible, I’d say: spaced repetition. There’s a lot of evidence suggesting that if you only care about short-term success, cramming will be fine. But if you care about holding onto the knowledge long-term, then cramming is definitely not good for that. So, instead of studying two hours a night before, you can spread your studying over four nights, 30 minutes each. You’re not studying more—you’re just giving your brain time each day to consolidate information and retain it.
9. If you could go back in time, what’s one thing you’d change about your high school experience?
I would tell myself to focus more on writing. Now that I’m digging more into the humanities and social sciences, I have a much greater appreciation for the craft of rhetoric and persuasion. Regardless of how generative AI technologies continue to evolve, I’m convinced that writing will remain a vital, human practice.
10. Can you tell us about your pets?
I have two dogs, Kit and Kat. Kit is 17—very old. He is definitely less mobile, and his mental faculties are a little bit diminished. He still likes treats! Kat is now nine years old, and she’s a little chihuahua with lots of personality and barking.
11. What do you think is the best gift for students to get for teachers? Be honest!
A donation to an organization or something that’s handmade. It’s not that I don’t appreciate a gift card—that’s still very kind! I’m privileged to be able to get the things I want, so I appreciate personalized gifts and those that benefit others in need.
12. What do you think is the worst gift for students to get for teachers? Be honest!
I’d say a Starbucks gift card because I just don’t really like Starbucks. It’s objectively not the worst gift, but I still have a hundred dollars of Starbucks gift cards stretching back many years that I’ve had a hard time using up.
13. Describe the Florida Keys trip. How and why did you plan it?
I’ll first say that Veena did the vast majority of the planning and logistics work, and I helped her. Veena and I both saw an opportunity to have our students explore Florida’s distinctive ecosystems and learn about the flora and fauna in the Everglades and Florida Keys. We also wanted them to learn about the effects of warmer, more acidic waters on Florida’s marine ecosystems, particularly its coral reefs.
14. What is your favorite tradition? With your family, partner, at school, in your class, or advisory?
I love Christmas. I love getting a Christmas tree and decorating it. I get excited to start listening to the Vince Guaraldi Trio’s “A Charlie Brown Christmas”—my favorite Christmas music album—right after Thanksgiving. I have all these other decorations that I like putting around my home. It sounds cheesy, but it’s nice and makes me happy.
15. What’s one regret you have?
That I took such a narrow approach to my education by going all in on science. I wish I had taken courses in other disciplines and become more of a generalist. While there’s nothing wrong with pursuing what you’re most passionate about, I’d encourage everyone to keep their options open for as long as possible before narrowing their focus—you never know how these disparate experiences will shape your life.
16. What’s your favorite chemistry unit to teach & why?
Stoichiometry because there are a lot of different ways of teaching it, and I enjoy all of the calculations.
17. What’s your favorite underrated food?
I really like kefir, a fermented milk drink that I consume like a drinkable yogurt. It has a mild, tangy flavor, and I usually eat it most mornings with some frozen berries and granola.
18. What’s one thing people always wrongly assume about you?
That I speak French well because I’m French. That used to be true, but no longer. I speak it pretty much just with my parents now. I’ve been trying to read and listen to more French news to make sure I don’t forget more of it!
19. As a child/student, in what ways were you supported or unsupported by adults?
I was in a French school system all the way through eighth grade, and the French school system was more rigorous. When I switched over to a large American public high school, I was often bored. It’s really no one’s fault, however, and I certainly don’t blame my teachers, who had many other students they had to support. As a result, I don’t think I got to appreciate learning for learning’s sake until later in life.
20. What’s the best conversation starter to converse with Jeremy Jacquot?
I think something like, What’s the most interesting podcast you’ve listened to recently? Because I love podcasts. So I will inevitably have something from that morning that I’m still grappling with or that sent me down some rabbit holes.
