After proudly serving his country in the U.S. Navy and U.S. Navy Reserves for several years, Spencer Gibson is pursuing his dream of teaching science to young people.

Gibson, of St. Petersburg, Florida, is working toward a Master of Arts in Teaching Science Education with a science endorsement from the University of Iowa College of Education and is one of 20 students in the program as of the fall semester of 2016. He served on active duty from 2004 to 2009 in Norfolk, Virginia, then served in the U.S. Navy Reserves from 2010 through 2013 in Fort Des Moines.

In the years following the terrorist attacks of 9/11, Gibson and a number of his friends became motivated to join various branches of the U.S. military. Gibson was an operation specialist (an E-5—a petty officer second class) in the U.S. Navy; his primary duties were tracking enemy and friendly vessels and encoding and decoding messages. While serving, Gibson earned the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal.

When asked why he’s now pursuing a career in teaching science, Gibson says that he always had a love for science and mathematics while growing up.

“Just doing the experiments and learning new things about how the world works always intrigued me,” Gibson says.

Now at the University of Iowa College of Education, Gibson became a member of the University of Iowa Veterans Association. He also hopes to get involved with the College of Education’s I-SERVE program—“Support, Education, Resources for Veterans and Enlisted.” He also received the Howard K. and Mathilda Ihrke Scholarship, which is awarded to first-generation students in the Teacher Education Program.

Throughout his time at the University of Iowa College of Education, Gibson says he has had the opportunity to learn impactful science-teaching techniques, including how to create a dialogue with students and not relying on his students to simply memorize facts.

“Honestly, all the professors that I’ve had have in some way pushed me to another level,” Gibson says.

Gibson has completed a number of practica and student-teaching experiences, including at Lucas Elementary School in Iowa City, Clear Creek Amana Middle School in Tiffin, and West Branch Middle School. He’s also had experiences as a substitute and full-time teacher at Farnell Middle School in West Chase, Florida.

Instilling confidence in his students is a priority for Gibson. He says he enjoys seeing students learn new concepts, as well as dispelling misconceptions they may have had about an element of science. But perhaps most important to Gibson is seeing students overcome challenges in their pursuit of scientific knowledge.

“To see them overcome an obstacle or many obstacles to learn something new is just amazing,” says Gibson. “That puts the most joy on my face.”

After completing his studies at the University of Iowa College of Education, Gibson hopes to teach in underserved communities and possibly at an international school.