After teaching for 10 years at Morris High School, Ryan Tripp has begun his first year as a math teacher at Lemont. He teaches Modern Math, Math II and Calculus. This is his eleventh year teaching math, but he has not always considered himself a “mathematically-minded” person. It was not until college that he realized math was way easier than he thought.
“I took a class called Statics and Dynamics, which is…an engineering course,” Tripp said. “And it all started making sense because it was real world application.”
Statics and Dynamics was one of Tripp’s last classes before he was able to finish up his Architecture degree from the University of Illinois before receiving his second bachelor’s in Mathematics from Eastern Illinois University. He then went on to receive a master’s degree in Mathematics from Aurora University.
Mr. Tripp hopes to inspire the same “lightbulb moments” he had during college in his students every day.
“When I see a student struggle with something and finally get it…that’s really rewarding,” Tripp said. “I’ve had former students…reach back out to me and they let me know that they’re using math in their job, or they were able to apply something they learned in my class. It’s just good to hear that the stuff I’m doing is making an impact.”
Mr. Tripp also assists the Marching Band’s percussion section. He began working in percussion for his brother’s high school band while obtaining his second bachelors at Eastern.
“I worked with his group for a few years, and when I got hired at Morris I started working with their percussion,” Tripp said.
He worked with Lemont’s percussion for a brief period in the summer of 2018 subbing for someone else, but he is returning this year as a full-time staff member.
When not teaching math or helping percussion with their music, Tripp enjoys reading. His favorite book is “The Godfather”, and he has even read it seven times. He also loves playing with his dog, Lola.
